What Next for Alex Pietrangelo? The Maple Leafs Perhaps?

Now that the St. Louis Blues have been eliminated from the playoffs, what is going to happen to their star defenseman Alex Pietrangelo? Is his time with the Blues over?

Pietrangelo is on an expiring contract and could become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. In addition, the Blues don’t currently have enough salary-cap space necessary to re-sign him. From the outside, given the emergence of Jordan Binnington over the past two seasons – especially that Binnington led the team to the Stanley Cup championships last season – might suggest that Jake Allen and his $4.35 million salary-cap hit might be trade bait. Certainly, Allen didn’t hurt his chances during the 2020 postseason play.

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However, Binnington was less than spectacular; in fact, he was a lot less than good. He was shelled and never looked comfortable in his net at any time this postseason. That leaves the Blues on the horns of a dilemma. Can they trust Binnington to be their future goalie?

Will the Blues Trade to Open Cap Space?

At this point, no one knows whether the Blues will try to make some trades as a way to free up space for their star defenseman. If they don’t, they certainly will be saying good-bye to their captain. The Blues are the only team he’s ever played for. They drafted him fourth overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

The 30-year-old Pietrangelo has been rumored to be headed all sorts of places, perhaps the most prominent rumors are to fill a need on the Toronto Maple Leafs back end. He’s also from King City, Ontario, which is close to Toronto.

Pietrangelo would be a wonderful addition to any club. He’s scored 109 goals and 450 points in 758 career games. He’s not only good on defense but is a great offensive defenseman as well. Likely, even within the shadow of COVID-19 and with many teams tight against the salary cap, he’ll be able to be paid handsomely.

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