Over the course of St. Louis Blues center Pius Suter's career, October has not been too kind to him. That sounds awfully familiar to that of the captain, Robert Thomas, as these opening games have yielded slower results from both the top of the center pipeline, to the bottom.
For Suter, he has played 53 games in October over the course of his seven-year career, and he has only been able to score a total of 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points. That includes this season, in which he has mustered a nice start of three goals and three assists for six points in eight games.
It seems he has flipped the script on that stigma, at least for this season. Suter has also gained some national eyes as well, as The Athletic named him as an under-the-radar trade piece for the Blues this season.
With his contract expiring at the end of this season, the Blues are in quite a position with Suter. They can utilize him as a solid fourth-line center for a couple of years ahead, as he is only 30 years old. Or, they can cash in, and deal him at the deadline to make room down the middle for an up-and-coming prospect.
Here is why cashing in might be the better option.
Strike while the iron is hot
To say that Suter's tenure with the Blues has been successful is a true statement. He has stepped into whatever role that was presented to him, and he took it on with grace. No. 22 has been a solid addition for this team since he signed his current two-year deal worth an AAV of $4.125 million.
Unfortunately, that price tag is a bit steep for a fourth-line centerman, and that is where the Blues are at an inpass. Jimmy Snuggerud, Jake Neighbours, and Jonatan Berggren are all going to be Restricted Free Agents and all of them should be extended. Not to mention the upcoming prospect pool of centers, like Tynan Lawrence, Maddox Deganais and more notably, Otto Stenberg.
Moving on from Suter is a hard one, but if he is keeping this pace by March, and the prospects are developing correctly, a move could be made to help the Blues.
Best start of career, and can keep it going
Suter's best two months of his career are in November and in March. Both have seen him push above and beyond the 30+ point range for both months,with March seeing him hit 41 points. It is safe to say that this season is no different.
He has been dependable on the penalty kill, which continues to be the better of the two special team units. If the Blues wanto have any kind of competitiveness to this season, that must continue.
The Blues are going to have to look toward Suter being a trade piece come February and March. It will benefit them greatly, as there is enough behind him to replace him, and not enough money to bring him back anywhere close to what he is getting paid now.
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