Blues Take 2 Huge Names Off the Table as Trade Deadline Approaches

The St. Louis Blues have made their position clear: two of their most prominent names are not going anywhere.

According to a report from Frank Seravalli, the Blues have told inquiring teams that both defenseman Colton Parayko and forward Robert Thomas are unavailable, effectively removing them from trade consideration as the offseason market heats up. The message from St. Louis has been consistent — these two aren’t on the block.

FWIW, one player coming off the Trade Targets 🎯 board today is Colton Parayko. #stlblues have told inquiring teams Parayko is unavailable, same answer for Robert Thomas.

Parayko has full no-trade protection through June 30, 2028.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 25, 2026

For Parayko, the commitment dates back to last season when he refused to waive his no-trade to the Buffalo Sabres. The 6-foot-6 blueliner carries full no-trade protection through June 30, 2028, giving him significant control over his own future while signaling that the Blues view him as a cornerstone of their defensive core. Since being drafted by St. Louis in 2012, Parayko has grown into one of the more reliable shutdown defenders in the Western Conference.

Thomas, meanwhile, is a 25-year-old center who has developed into one of the league’s more dynamic playmakers, and keeping him off the trade market suggests the Blues have no intention of pivoting away from their core group.

Together, Parayko and Thomas are the faces of the St. Louis Blues. Dealing either player would have signaled a rebuild. Keeping both signals something else entirely: belief.

With the Blues holding firm on their two biggest names, attention will now shift to what moves, if any, they do make this offseason as they look to get back into Stanley Cup contention.

What are the Blues’ draft plans?

It leaves the Blues in an interesting position entering Friday’s first round. The team has four first-round picks after the Jordan Kyrou and Justin Faulk trades, which might’ve led some to believe that they were heading toward a rebuild.

With Thomas and Parayko staying, St. Louis is aiming to contend for a playoff spot. However, with picks 11, 15, 16, and 29 in the first round, the chances of any of those players having an immediate impact on the current roster are slim. This kind of quick retool with a bunch of mid-round picks has actually been done before, and the Blues know firsthand that it got that team back into contention.

The Boston Bruins sold off some pieces before the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and had a terrible showing with back-to-back-to-back picks in the same range as St. Louis in 2026. Revisionist history shows that they missed on all three picks, ironically with a first-time GM at the helm at the draft, but the team was still able to return to the Stanley Cup Final just four years later by keeping their core together.

Alex Steen and the Blues hope that a similar fate awaits them in four years, with Thomas and Parayko still leading the team. The only hope for St. Louis fans is that Steen has a much better first draft class than Don Sweeney did in that retool.

Next: Sabres, Blues, and a Deal That Almost Happened?