The St. Louis Blues have had a long history of making great trades during the middle of the season. Over the last 57 years, there have been historic deals made, that changed the record-books and have had an everlasting impact on the organization.
Here are three of the greatest trades to happen in the middle of the season.
Cam Fowler, 2024-25
This was a fantastic pick-up for the Blues and a career revival for Cam Fowler. General Manager Doug Armstrong put on a master class and fleeced the Anaheim Ducks for Fowler, who made an immediate impact with his new squad.
Fowler's best moments came in the playoffs, as he used his frustration of not making it there for nearly a decade. In the first round matchup against the Winnipeg Jets, he had a pair of goals and eight assists for 10 points. That led the Blues roster, and is still amongst the highest for defenseman as the Playoffs currently enter the Conference Finals.
Brett Hull, 1988-89
The biggest trade in Blues history happened in March of 1988, with the Calgary Flames. Brett Hull was brought over in exchange for defenseman Rob Ramage and goaltender Rick Wamsley. What came next would have an everlasting effect on this franchise.
Hull played 11 seasons with the Blues and scored 527 of his 741 goals in the Blue Note. That is still a record that stands to today, with no current player anywhere close to that mark. The most memorable season from "The Golden Brett" was the 1990-91 season in which he set franchise records in goals, 86, and points with 131 for the season.
This trade, that happened 36 years ago, will likely go down as the greatest in Blues history. There may not be another trade to happen in the future that will touch the impact this one had.
Ryan O'Reilly, 2018-19
The only contender to be the best trade in Blues history was the trade for Ryan O' Reilly with Buffalo. Obviously, O' Reilly statistically is nowhere near Hull in terms of goals or assists, but there is one thing that he one-upped him on --- Lifting Lord Stanley's cup.
The trade was O' Reilly for Tage Thompson, Patrik Berglund, and Vladimir Sobotka, plus a 2019 first-round pick and a 2021 second-round pick. Both sides got exactly what they wanted, with the Blues gaining the upper hand by having a key piece leading them to the most sought-after object in all of hockey.
The 2018-19 season was an incredible display of determination and perseverance. The magic was there for the entire year, and the playoffs were even more special. O' Reilly had a direct impact on that Stanley Cup-winning season, earning him the "C" on his chest just a few years later.