BenFred: Making best out of bad situation is all that’s left for Blues, as Tarasenko trade showed

It should not have ended like this, but once it became clear it would, the outcome looks all right.

My apologies for the lack of nostalgia.

Just trying to keep it real.

The rest of this Blues season is about general manager Doug Armstrong making the best situation out of a mess that has developed on his watch, and Thursday’s trade of Blues star Vladimir Tarasenko to the New York Rangers shows how being bluntly honest about a going-nowhere present can lead to changes that hopefully expedite the turning of the page toward a more fulfilling future.

In a perfect world, Tarasenko never wears another team’s sweater. He retires here, sees his number lifted to the Enterprise Center rafters, and one day sees a statue debuted outside the building.

He was a key member of the Blues’ first-ever Stanley Cup championship core, a top-five all-time Blues producer of goals (262, fifth) and points (553, fifth), a four-time All-Star and a fan favorite for so many.

People are also reading…

But the world stopped being perfect between the Blues and Tarasenko seasons ago, and while both sides moved forward together in a professional manner after an embarrassing spat, there was never some big Kumbaya moment, not even a suggestion of one.

Tarasenko had never walked back his trade request from the summer of 2021 and had given the Blues a list of teams he would drop his no-trade clause to join. Armstrong had only addressed the forward’s future with the team in short blips, never speaking on the long-term future beyond Tarasenko’s expiring eight-year deal. Tarasenko wanted out. Armstrong was willing to make it so, but not if it meant agreeing to a bad deal.

The worst deal possible would have been letting Tarasenko walk for nothing in free agency this offseason. And that’s what would have happened. You can stomach it if you are a contender, playing to win now. You can’t if you barely have a chance of making the playoffs. The Blues thought they had a chance of doing some damage entering this season. Then the bottom fell out. The clock was ticking.

Armstrong had waited and waited, perhaps waiting too long. But the package acquired Thursday is one that makes a lot of sense for the Blues. Fans will see that, if they can set aside the initial shock of seeing a favorite player depart. For Tarasenko and 50% of his remaining salary, along with Niko Mikkola, the Blues netted a massively important 2023 first-round pick, and some other significant sweeteners.

Stanley Cup champion Sammy Blais is coming back to the Blues, along with Rangers prospect Hunter Skinner, and a conditional 2024 fourth-round pick.

Blais, now 26, adds feel-good sentiment with his Blues reunion, or could be flipped as well before the March 3 trade deadline, as he too is a pending free agent. Skinner is a project. The fourth-round pick becomes a third-round pick if the Rangers make the playoffs; all signs point toward that happening. The first-round pick? Huge. You know who was a first-round pick? Tarasenko, who was drafted 16th overall by the Blues back in 2010.

“A first-round pick is just a number right now,” Armstrong said. “But as soon as you put a name to it, for some reason, they become probably 20% better than they really are to the team that picks them, but we are no different than other teams. A first-round pick is something our (amateur draft) guys are excited to have. It also give you the ability to package it and whatever pick we may have to move up (draft slots), to use the pick (as is), or the ability to trade it like we have in the past for NHL proven players. First-round picks are big-time equity in the NHL, and now we have two for this year.”

This move should help all parties.

The Rangers added a six-time 30-plus goal scorer to their dressing room before the playoff push, and they are only picking up half of Tarasenko’s tab. The Blues are betting on this deal aging well, once the draft picks have names and games to compare to the alternate option of letting Tarasenko walk for nada. As for Tarasenko, he gets the fresh start he wanted and a chance to improve his next contract.

There was a lot of immediate reaction Thursday about how Tarasenko should be remembered. That’s for fans to decide. You tell me.

He helped the Blues grow their brand and expand their fan base. They don’t win their first-ever Cup without him. He is one of the best scorers and most skilled players to ever play here.

He also grumbled to Russian media about the Blues’ decision to name Ryan O’Reilly the team captain after the championship. He went public with his trade request through an agent who took shots at everyone from the Blues doctors who operated on Tarasenko’s shoulder, to Blues coach Craig Berube for how he used the forward. He managed to become the rare St. Louis sports hero who clearly wanted out, and still was beloved.

My take? Those who don’t factor in Tarasenko’s temporary heel turn as one of the reasons the Blues faded so quickly from championship contention are excusing too much.

Armstrong often gets heat for his cold and calculated nature that can make beloved Blues feel unwanted or undervalued during contract negotiations or lack thereof. I’m sorry, but I have a hard time putting this marathon breakup in that camp. There was one side that got out of line in this fraying relationship, and it wasn’t Armstrong’s side.

Fortunately, for all parties, time toned down some of the venom. Had the Blues traded Tarasenko upon his initial request back in 2021, it would have been a pretty bitter goodbye, especially considering his trade value was shot at that time. Remember, Seattle passed over him in the expansion draft. But cooler heads prevailed, fortunately, professionalism won out and Tarasenko returned and played well enough to increase his value again.

Had Armstrong known this season’s derailment was coming, he would have moved Tarasenko before the season started. He didn’t see the bottom falling out. But it did, and now Armstrong has a mess to clean up. By securing a first-round pick Thursday for a departure that was inevitable, he made the first of multiple attempts to do so.

Sports columnists Ben Frederickson and Jeff Gordon get real about the return of the Blues from the All-Star break. Who can help themselves with other teams after a trade? Who can help themselves with this team before the season ends? And, how does GM Doug Armstrong break up an underperforming defense?

Ben Frederickson ,  Jeff Gordon ,  Gary Hairlson

The latest STL Blues hockey news, NHL headlines, scores, standings and rosters.