Blues Unlikely to Trade Tarasenko as Perron Heads to Free Agency

If David Perron is heading to the free agency market, which rumors suggest he is, it seems less likely the St. Louis Blues would be open to trading Vladimir Tarasenko and crippling the right side of their offense. Fans are not terribly happy that Perron is leaving, but this might not have been a choice by the Blues and they’re making the best of a less-than-ideal situation.

Andy Strickland writes, “I never got the sense a Tarasenko trade was ever in the works to begin with”. It’s not clear if that’s because teams weren’t interested in giving up multiple assets to get one season out of him before his contract expires or they weren’t terribly excited about his $7.5 million cap hit. What is clear is that the Blues felt they couldn’t afford both players, not with what Perron will be asking for on the market. As such, it’s likely Tarasenko stays and Perron goes, even if it means keeping a player who will leave anyways when his deal expires.

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Perhaps the Blues start fresh when that happens. Strickland adds, “The Blues have gotten a ton of mileage out of Tarasenko. Won a cup with him and he’s become one of the greatest goal scorers in team history.” And, there’s always a chance, depending on where the Blues are at during the season, that Tarasenko could be moved at the trade deadline.

Perron Too Rich for Blues

If Perron is asking for $6 million to $8 million on the open market, the Blues were never going to be able to afford that contract, not with Tarasenko on the books. But, if teams aren’t lining up to give the Blues a fair return for a player who just scored 82 points in 75 games, it’s also logical that the Blues aren’t willing to just dump him.

What’s so incredible about all of this is that Tarasenko was available for free to the Seattle Kraken during the NHL Expansion Draft and they chose not to add him.

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