When asked if there is a new team that has entered the conversation when it comes to Timo Meier and his possibly being traded by the San Jose Sharks before the March 3 trade deadline, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli noted that the St. Louis Blues have jumped into the mix. He responded, “I am told it’s the St. Louis Blues, and that may be a surprise to some but it shouldn’t be.” Seravalli isn’t the only one suggesting the Blues as an option. Both Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman discussed the Blues’ potential desire to fast-track their retool and believe Meier could be an option for them.
After dealing Vladimir Tarasenko, Noel Acciari, and Ryan O’Reilly in different trades earlier this week, Seravalli explained that the Blues might try to flip their picks. He noted:
“This shouldn’t be a shock, this is exactly what Blues general manager Doug Armstrong has done in his playbook previously. Think back to the trades he’s done in recent years: Kevin Shattenkirk for a first-round pick, he then takes that pick and uses it to acquire Brayden Schenn in the summer. More recently than that, Paul Stastny moved at the deadline for a first-round pick, he then takes that pick in a package to get Ryan O’Reilly.”
Marek and Friedman discussed the idea of the Blues not being motivated to take the lengthy rebuild route and thought Armstrong might not only target Meier, but potentially look at defenseman Jakob Chychrun ahead of this season’s trade deadline. They too pointed to how aggressive Armstrong has been in the past and noted the organization has the prospects and picks to make the deal.
The Blues now have three first-round picks this year. They are in a unique position to leverage those first-round picks, to bring in someone like Timo Meier to play with Jordan Kyrou, Robert Thomas, and Brayden Schenn. There have also been rumors that the Blues are open to trading a defenseman and have gotten calls on Colton Parayko and Torey Krug. Both have no-trade clauses, but if one wished to leave, the Blues could add even more picks.
Until this report of the Blues being interested popped up, the New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes were the frontrunners for Meier in previous trade rumors.
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