Heading into the free agency phase of the offseason, the St. Louis Blues opted to extend qualifying offers to three restricted free agents (RFA), forwards Alexey Toropchenko and Hugh McGing, and defenseman Tyler Tucker. One RFA that they chose not to qualify was former 11th overall pick, Logan Brown, making him a free agent. Along with Brown (signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning), forwards Tyler Pitlick (New York Rangers), Josh Leivo (unsigned), and Matthew Highmore (Ottawa Senators), defensemen Steven Santini (Los Angeles Kings), Dmitri Samorukov (unsigned), and goaltender Thomas Greiss (unsigned) have all parted ways with the club.
Related: Blues Weekly: 2023 Draft, Defense, Free Agency & More
Entering the offseason, we knew the club would be short on cap space. They have a lot of big-money contracts tied up in underperforming defensemen, all of whom have some form of no-trade clause (NTC). There have been rumors that general manager Doug Armstrong will try to move at least one of these contracts to create cap space, but so far, nothing has come to fruition.
With no moves to create room for new faces and players like Toropchenko and Tucker due for raises, the Blues have remained relatively quiet in free agency. Unless something major happens, I don’t see that changing.
Blues’ Cap Space is a Major Problem
After reuniting with 29-year-old forward Mackenzie MacEachern on a two-year, one-way contract on July 1, the Blues’ currently have $81,139,762 allocated to 21 roster players (12 forwards, eight defensemen, and one goalie). Due to Toropchenko being a qualified RFA, he won’t yet count against the cap or active roster count until he and the Blues reach an agreement, but he’s clearly in their plans for next season. With the 2023-24 salary cap set at $83,500,000, they’re sitting with only $2,360,268 of available cap space.
Before the deal to bring center Kevin Hayes to St. Louis was finalized, it was rumored that a Blues defenseman had been asked to waive his NTC and be a part of the return for the Philadelphia Flyers. It was reported that of those with a full NTC, Colton Parayko, Justin Faulk, and Nick Leddy were not asked to waive their protection, leaving Torey Krug as the odd man out. Not wanting to uproot his family and join a non-contending team, he opted to utilize his NTC to nix himself as being a part of the deal, causing much of the reported trade to fall apart. With very few trades coming out of the draft and the cap remaining relatively flat (just a $1 million bump), the Blues may not be able to find a way to move out a big contract.
Blues’ Roster is Mostly Set
As everything stands now, the Blues’ roster is mostly set. Here’s a breakdown of the projected lineup in alphabetical order by position:
Forwards (13): Sammy Blais, Pavel Buchnevich, Hayes, Kasperi Kapanen, Jordan Kyrou, MacEachern, Jake Neighbours, Brandon Saad, Brayden Schenn, Robert Thomas, Toropchenko, Jakub Vrana, Nathan Walker
Defense (8): Robert Bortuzzo, Faulk, Krug, Leddy, Parayko, Calle Rosén, Marco Scandella, Tucker
Goalies (2): Jordan Binnington, Hofer
Tucker and Hofer aren’t currently listed on the active roster, but both were signed to one-way deals with an AAV of $800,000 and $775,000, respectively – an indication that they will be with the big club to start the season. These additions would put the Blues’ roster at the max of 23, and without knowing what Toropchenko’s AAV will be for this season, their cap hit will come in at $82,714,762, leaving just $785,238 in available space – and Toropchenko should take most of if not all of the remaining money.
Bottom line: the Blues cannot afford to make any additions, either financially or in their lineup.
Barring a Trade, Blues are Set
It’s an odd situation for St. Louis to be in after missing the 2023 Playoffs, leading to a top-10 pick and their roster being nearly 100% set. The club was atrocious defensively last season and is set to bring back basically every piece of that corps. However, the organization continues to point out that 2022-23 was a blip on the radar, and they’re relying heavily on each of their top-four defenders to bounce back closer to their career averages. It’s hard to say whether or not that will be enough, but unless a hockey trade comes their way between now and September, the Blues’ 23-man roster appears to be set.