The St. Louis Blues are on the rise.
After an improbable regular season run to the playoffs, the Blues battled the Presidents’ Trophy winners Winnipeg Jets in a thrilling first-round series.
Despite the heartbreaking Game 7 loss, St. Louis should feel confident in its trajectory with an inspiring, young core and head coach Jim Montgomery’s leadership, who went 35-18-7 after taking over for Drew Bannister.
According to Andy Strickland of “Leafs Morning Take,” the Blues’ top person of interest this offseason is Dallas Stars forward Mikael Granlund.
Granlund is an unrestricted free agent after spending 2024-25 with the San Jose Sharks and the Stars. He put up another impressive offensive season, netting 22 goals and 66 points over 83 games.
He may be 33 years old, but he remains a legitimate point producer and would make a fine addition to the middle six of this forward group.
But this Blues team is already well-stocked with wingers. Jordan Kyrou (36 goals, 70 points), Dylan Holloway (26 goals, 63 points), Pavel Buchnevich (20 goals, 57 points), Jake Neighbours (22 goals, 46 points), and Zack Bolduc (19 goals, 36 points) are all cornerstone pieces on the outside.
Jimmy Snuggerud also made his rookie debut after a dominant career at the University of Minnesota and has all the makings of a top-line forward.
Perhaps one of the aforementioned names can jump into a 2C role, which would create more favorable matchups with captain Brayden Schenn bumped down to the third line.
While Granlund could be a relatively inexpensive acquisition, defense feels like a greater need for St. Louis at this moment. That is nothing against its top four of Colton Parayko, Cam Fowler, Philip Broberg, and Justin Faulk (there is no telling how Torey Krug will recover from ankle surgery).
But the Blues have the tools to compete for a Stanley Cup sooner rather than later, and would benefit from another puck mover on the back end, not another scoring winger.
