Fansided

5 NHL teams that should trade for Chris Kreider

By Griffin Youngs

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 29: Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers argues a second period call during the game against the Philadelphia Flyers at Madison Square Garden on January 29, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 29: Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers argues a second period call during the game against the Philadelphia Flyers at Madison Square Garden on January 29, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Joe Puetz/NHLI via Getty Images
Photo by Joe Puetz/NHLI via Getty Images /

St. Louis Blues

The defending Stanley Cup champions are serious about a potential repeat this June, and they could be swinging for the fences at the deadline to get them there. With the Blues being in on Taylor Hall before his trade to Arizona in December, it’s not much of a stretch to think that they’ll be going after the next best left winger on the market in Kreider.

The Blues are firmly in control of the Western Conference with 70 points, eight better than the next best Avalanche. They’re also just five points behind the Washington Capitals in the Presidents’ Trophy race, and are in great shape to lock up home ice advantage through the Western Conference Final. The Blues have also been doing as well as they have without their goal scorer in Vladimir Tarasenko, and should get him back around the time the playoffs roll around in April.

Adding Kreider to the mix for St. Louis ends any last notion of the Blues still somehow flying under the radar. His rough play style fits perfectly with the kind of hockey that the Blues play. Placing him on the wing alongside Ryan O’Reilly and David Perron would give the Blues one of the most balanced top six forward groups in the league, as well as pushing down some of the talent to improve their bottom six.

The Blues would have to work out some salary cap moves in order to fit Kreider under the cap, as they only have $20,326 in salary cap space to work with, but surely they can take care of that without altering the team significantly.

The Blues do have the assets to move and the will to move them in order to win now. Obviously they have their own first round pick, but also every pick until round five of the draft. Their prospect pool is admittedly quite weak after some trades and players graduating to the NHL, but there’s enough there that they can make a package that the Rangers will bite on. The package would definitely have to be quality over quality, but it’s what got the Hall trade done in December.

With Alex Pietrangelo‘s contract expiring at the end of this season and the chance at a repeat on the line, the Blues are going to take extra care not to waste this opportunity when everything is going so well. If they do go out and trade for Kreider and then get Tarasenko back, make no mistake, they will be the favorite to win the Stanley Cup. Respect the Blues.

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