The St. Louis Blues have found themselves in the playoff chase in the Western Conference. General manager Doug Armstrong deserves credit for finding ways to make the team competitive, from bold offer sheets to trading for a veteran defenceman. Now that we are in January, the looming NHL Trade Deadline is on many minds. A rumour has circulated that the Nashville Predators may be interested in trading centre Ryan O’Reilly, pending O’Reilly’s approval. Naturally, some Blues fans may wonder if an O’Reilly reunion in St. Louis is possible. It is possible, but it will require steps by the Blues to maneuver the salary cap.
An O’Reilly Reunion in St. Louis
The Salary Cap
O’Reilly has three years left on his contract and has a cap hit of $4.5 per season. The Blues currently have just over $3.5 million in available cap. Simple math tells us the Blues have to shed some salary if an O’Reilly reunion is to happen. Specifically, they need to free about $1 million to add O’Reilly to the roster for this season. However, that is not enough for the remaining two seasons on O’Reilly’s contract. This is because Pavel Buchnevich‘s new contract kicks in next season. It carries a cap hit of $8 million a season, $2.2 million more than his current contract does. As a result, there is an additional $2.2 million the Blues need to free to make an O’Reilly reunion in St. Louis happen past this season. Combining the two, means the Blues have to free up roughly $3.2 million in cap.
Thankfully, there are some ways the Blues can free up $3.2 million and then some.
Step 1- Trade Brandon Saad
Last month, a rumour surfaced that the Blues may be looking to trade the two-time Stanley Cup champion. Saad has spent some time as a healthy scratch recently but did record a hat trick a few weeks ago. A team that trades for Saad would be getting a veteran who knows what it takes to win the Stanley Cup. For the Blues, they would clear up to $4.5 million. However, if there was some salary retained, which can be no more than 50% of Saad’s annual cap hit, the Blues could still be just under the $3.2 million needed to afford O’Reilly past this season.
Step 2- Trade Radek Faksa or Oskar Sundqvist
If a reunion in St. Louis happened with O’Reilly, he would take either the second or third centre position. This means Faksa or Sundqvist will be out of the lineup. If they are not going to play, then why not trade them and free up some salary?
Faksa is a free agent after this season and carries a cap hit of $3.25 million. Sundqvist is under contract for next season and carries a cap hit of $1.5 million. Despite having a higher cap hit, Faksa may be the easier of the two to move due to being a free agent after this season. Furthermore, a rumour surfaced in December that the Blues were shopping Faksa as well as Saad. The Blues would likely not have to retain any salary if they traded Faksa. This $3.25 million off the books would be what the Blues needed to afford O’Reilly past this season.
There are other cap-clearing options the Blues could explore, such as veteran defenceman Torey Krug, who, despite being on long-term injured reserve, is eligible to be traded.
Salary Cap is Just Part of It
Of course, adjusting the salary cap is only part of it. The Blues would then need to decide who they would offer to the Predators in exchange for O’Reilly. The Blues have quite a few prospects they could include in a trade. Only two would be considered untouchable, and those are Jimmy Snuggerud and Dalibor Dvorsky. Other than those two, all other prospects could be considered.
Lastly, it appears that O’Reilly would need to approve the trade. While he does not have a no-trade clause in his contract, general manager Barry Trotz is allowing O’Reilly a say in where he goes. It is unknown if O’Reilly would want to reunite with the Blues, but there is no evidence to suggest he has any ill will towards the team. O’Reilly may want to go to a team that is considered a Stanley Cup contender, not just a playoff contender. As with everyone else who has come up in trade rumours, we will have to wait and see.
The point is, Blues fans, an O’Reilly reunion in St. Louis is possible.
Main Photo: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
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