NHL rumors: 3 teams that should trade for Matthew Tkachuk

1. St. Louis Blues

There is perhaps no better fit in the league for Matthew Tkachuk than the St. Louis Blues. Tkachuk grew up in the area and has significant family ties to the organization, as his father Keith is a former Blues star who now works for the team. Jeremy Rutherford, the Blues beat writer for The Athletic, recently told 101 ESPN St. Louis that “the Blues are on the list” of teams Tkachuk would sign a long-term deal with, so that helps matters.

The one thing (and it’s a major one) standing in the way of this potential deal is money. The Blues are projected to enter the season with just $625,000 of cap space, significantly less than other teams in the running.

Winger Vladimir Tarasenko has recently made a trade request to the Blues front office and the request is reportedly still intact. Unloading Tarasenko’s contract would immediately free up $7.5MM in cap space, so a move to free some funds is definitely a possibility. Blues GM Doug Armstrong has reportedly been exploring a trade sending Torey Krug out of town, a move that would free up an additional $6.5MM of cap space.

One name that has frequently been brought up in potential trade scenarios is center Jordan Kyrou, who is just 24 years old and under team control through 2025. He scored 75 points last season and is one repeat season of last year’s performance away from being in line for a serious payday, one the Blues can’t afford as things currently stand.

Additional players like Jake Neighbours, Pavel Buchnevich, Zachary Bolduc or Scott Perunovich are other names that could be of interest to Calgary.