We are now in for what could be a very exciting offseason. There will be the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft. Jack Eichel requested a trade. The Seth Jones trade rumors are flying around.
And now... Vladimir Tarasenko has requested a trade from the St. Louis Blues.
Jeremy Rutherford, who covers the Blues on The Athletic, confirmed about Tarasenko's trade request.
But Why did Tarasenko Request a Trade?
He is reportedly not happy with how the Blues handled his shoulder surgeries. So, the trust between the two parties has reached a rift.
He went through three shoulder surgeries: The first being on April 2018, when he first had a reconstructive operation on the shoulder. The second was on October 2019, after an awkward tangle-up that involved him and Los Angeles Kings defenseman Sean Walker, forcing Tarasenko to miss 61 regular season games. He returned to the Blues in July 2020 in time to play in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but after four games, he was taken out for further evaluation on his shoulder, eventually needing a third surgery in August 2020, limiting him to just 24 regular season games this season.
The first two surgeries were done by the Blues' team physicians, which led to a lack of trust within the organization. The third surgery was done by an independent doctor at the Steadman Clinic in Edwards, Colorado, where the clinic discovered ligament damage that the team physicians did not find in the first two surgeries.
Sounds familiar to the Eichel situation? Because it very much looks like it. Like Tarasenko, Eichel voiced his displeasure towards the Buffalo Sabres on how they handled his injury, as said in his exit interview.
Rutherford listed several teams in his article that Tarasenko would apparently want to be traded to:
Tampa Bay Lightning (which is surprising considering that they just won the second of back-to-back Stanley Cups and do not have any cap space heading into the offseason)
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Islanders
Vegas Golden Knights
Washington Capitals
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Florida Panthers
What do all of these teams have in common? They all made the playoffs in the 2021 season. So, from what it can be given here, Tarasenko wants to win. He does not want to be part of a rebuilding franchise, given that he will turn 30 in December.
The two teams that make the most sense to me for a potential Tarasenko trade are the Islanders and Canadiens. Two other teams that could be involved, in my opinion, are the Edmonton Oilers and the New York Rangers.
New York Islanders
Although the Islanders made the Conference Final/Stanley Cup Semifinal round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second year in a row, they want to be in the hunt for a top scoring winger, as they lack true star power despite Mathew Barzal being the closest they have to a superstar player.
Oliver Wahlstrom and Noah Dobson are solid young players who were both drafted by the Islanders in the first round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.
However, the concern about a Tarasenko trade to the Island is the Isles' salary cap situation. They might not be able to bring back UFAs Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac after acquiring them in the 2021 trade deadline. They also need to re-sign RFAs Adam Pelech and Anthony Beauvillier.
If the Isles want to go after Tarasenko while retaining Pelech and Beauvillier, then that means that either one or both of Wahlstrom and Dobson could be part of the deal, with the Blues retaining 50% of Tarasenko's salary. Not only that, but they would likely also have to get a third team involved too, and that is where the Detroit Red Wings step in.
The Red Wings have $48M in cap space, which means that they have a ton of money that they can afford to take on a portion of Tarasenko's contract in exchange for a 2nd round pick in the 2022 Draft.
Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens are an interesting team on this list. They just came off of making a surprise run to the Stanley Cup Final as the 16th-seeded team overall in the playoffs.
Similar to the Islanders, the Canadiens lack high-end scoring talent. They averaged 2.32 goals per game during the playoffs, ranking 12th out of all 16 teams that made the playoffs, and 2.82 goals per game in the regular season, 17th in the league.
However, general manager Marc Bergevin is not afraid to make trades. He has made questionable trades in the past that ended up working towards the Canadiens' favor, such as dealing Max Pacioretty to the Golden Knights for Tomas Tatar and Nick Suzuki.
So, if Bergevin believes that Tarasenko is the final piece to the puzzle for a potential Stanley Cup run, don't rule this out.
Edmonton Oilers
The fact that the Oilers are here may come as surprising, given that the Oilers don't truly need him. And even if they have enough to get a Tarasenko trade going, they unlikely to prioritize another scoring forward over their true need: Team depth to help Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and that the offense not be limited to just them and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Say, they could go after someone like Jake DeBrusk for the top 6. They could go after a Nick Foligno and a Christian Fischer for the bottom 6.
But should the Oilers decide to go after Tarasenko, they would want to trade away one of their young guys and a veteran player.
And no, before you ask, that veteran player is not James Neal, as the Oilers have to buy out his contract.
The Blues could go for Philip Broberg and Zack Kassian, as Vince Dunn's time in St. Louis is likely up, and that the Blues need to add what they have been missing since their Cup run in 2019: Gritty veteran presence.
New York Rangers
This is an interesting team that could be brought up, given that Tarasenko could have the opportunity to play with fellow countryman Artemi Panarin. At the same time, it also makes sense given that they have the cap space to make a trade for him.
Newly appointed general manager Chris Drury would want to be aggressive this summer. If they don't manage to land Jack Eichel, then Tarasenko it is.
The Rangers also have plenty of young talent to work with. The question is who the Blues would take.
Say, throw in a combination of Vitali Kravtsov and Libor Hajek in the deal. Both are big-bodied players, the former being a goal-scoring forward and the latter being a lockdown defender should he develop further.
What do all of these teams have in common? They are all playoff contenders looking for an extra push.
Tarasenko is one of the most dangerous goal scorers in the league. He tallied five consecutive 30-goal seasons from 2015 to 2019, having scored 40 in the 2016 season alone, and recorded three consecutive 70-point seasons from 2015 to 2017.
He has a cap hit of $7.5M per year. However, his base salary will jump from $5.5M in 2021 to $9.5M in 2022. He also has a full no-trade clause on his contract, which means that the Blues cannot trade him unless he decides to waive his no-trade clause.
His health is another concern, as he played in only 34 regular season games in the past two seasons, tallying seven goals and seventeen assists in that span.
There will be a lot of interest in him, but the question is if there will be teams willing to give up a big package for him.
Although the injuries have decreased his trade value, what increases his value is his contract. If he can get back to 2017 form, then it is a good contract, given that he is signed through the 2023 season. If he can't recapture that form, then all is well, since the contract doesn't go beyond 2023.
After all, it is easier to take a risk on a player if you don't have to give up a crazily large package.
So, where does Tarasenko end up?
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