Western Conference superstar could be headed to the Eastern Conference
A new week has begun, but with the free agent market looking pretty thin at the moment, teams who swung and missed in free agency may turn to the trade market to address some of their needs. With how quiet they both have been thus far, I think we can include the New York Islanders and the Philadelphia Flyers among them.
According to The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta, the Flyers and Islanders are both believed to have called St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong about pending UFA winger and former Stanley Cup Champ Vladimir Tarasenko.
Tarasenko famously requested a trade last summer, but had reportedly rescinded his request at some point during the season. With the Blues having been bounced from the playoffs in back to back years by the Colorado Avalanche, could they be considering a move to act as a catalyst for the group and change up the look of things a bit?
Tarasenko has one year remaining on his current deal, which carries a $7.5M cap hit. Contracts that large are typically not shipped out without money coming back the other way, so if the Blues do pull the trigger, I'd imagine that we'll see a significant piece coming back. With rumours of defenseman Ivan Provorov being on the block in Philly, he could make some sense.
Tarasenko put together a stellar 2021-22 campaign, posting 34 goals and 82 points in just 75 games for the Blues this season, which was a career year for the 30-year-old. He also had 9 points in 12 playoff games this year.
