The offseason is always a fun time for hockey fans as their favorite team begins to formulate a plan. For the St. Louis Blues their season ended on April 7th and that is a full two months before the Stanley Cup Finals ended. Let’s get a feel for what has happened so far this offseason.
2018 Draft
The first pick was the 25th overall selection (via Toronto) and Dominik Bokk was taken out of Sweden. He is 18 years of age and a 6’1” right winger. The Blues were able to get their player after making a trade with Toronto in exchange for their 29th and 76th overall picks.
The Blues used their remaining picks to take defenseman Scott Perunovich 45th overall, goaltender Joel Hofer 107th overall, forward Hugh McGing 138th overall, forward Mathias Laferriere 169th overall and defenseman Tyler Tucker 200th overall.
Offseason Deals and Signings:
May 31, 2018 Signed D Niko Mikkola to a two-year, entry-level contract.
June 24, 2018 Signed F Nikita Soshnikov to a one-year contract.
July 1, 2018 Acquired center Ryan O’Reilly from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for forwards Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and Tage Thompson, as well as a first-round pick in 2019 and a second-round pick in 2021.
July 1, 2018 Signed goaltender Chad Johnson to a one-year contract worth $1.75 million.
July 1, 2018 Signed center Tyler Bozak to a three-year deal worth $15 million.
July 2, 2018 Signed F David Perron to a four-year contract, C Tyler Bozak to a three-year contract and G Chad Johnson to a one-year contract.
July 3, 2018 Signed restricted free agent Mackenzie MacEachern to a one-year, two-way contract.
July 5, 2018 Signed F Robby Fabbri to a one-year contract
July 5, 2018 Signed forward Jordan Nolan to a one-year, two-way contract
July 6, 2018 Signed goaltender Jordan Binnington on a one-year, two-way contract
July 6, 2018 The Blues have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with forward Oskar Sundqvist.
July 7, 2018 Dmitrij Jaskin agreed to a one-year contract with the St. Louis Blues
July 10, 2018 Pat Maroon signed a one-year contract to join his hometown St. Louis Blues
Look Ahead
GM Doug Armstrong may have put this team in contention for a playoff spot in the 2018-2019 season. Third place is an actuality with a 6th place in the West there for the taking. The defense is better than average and looks to shine more than last season. Jake Allen must stay healthy and in net for most of the season.
The Blues probably overpaid for Ryan O’Reilly but the bottom line is they are now a better team for it. Looking at Brayden Schenn, Tyler Bozak and O’Reilly is a potent tandem. David Perron wanted to be back in St. Louis and add him with an injury-free Robby Fabbri bodes well for St. Louis. The offense is solid and a rookie like Robert Thomas could make this a fantastic season.
Go Blues!
Pat Maroon: “I’m really excited. It’s going to be a really good year. It’s going to be a fun year. I’m excited to be a Bluenote. I’ve dreamed of putting that jersey on. That decision was kind of easy knowing what the roster looked like.”
Nikita Soshnikov agreed to give up his uniform number 90 for Ryan O’Reilly. Soshnikov will wear #86.
