First, it was supposed to be the New York Rangers. Then it was said that the Montreal Canadiens were "aggressively" pursuing a deal. And on Thursday, some cold water was thrown over the entirety of the Jonathan Drouin trade talk, when it was said that yes, the Rangers and Canadiens were interested in a potential deal, but so was just about every other team in the NHL. Drouin, the No. 3 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, is a highly skilled prospect with immense upside as a scorer. Every team in the NHL could use another three or four players like that.
But only one team will be able to come away from the NHL trade market with the Tampa Bay Lightning forward - assuming, of course that Lightning GM Steve Yzerman decides to trade him - and talk will continue to persist unless or until Yzerman pulls the trigger.
The latest report, from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, suggests that the St. Louis Blues and GM Doug Armstrong, so desperate to add some elite scoring forwards to balance out a lineup that's leaned far too heavily in the blueline's favor, are likely the team chasing Drouin the most fervently.
"I think there's a team out there, and to me I think that team that wants him the most is probably St. Louis," Friedman said Friday, while appearing on Calgary's Sportsnet 960, per Today's Slap Shot. "Tampa has been scouting them hard. Pat Verbeek came back from the world juniors and I think has been to a couple of games this week. I know he was in Colorado the other night. That's a haul - Finland to Denver. I think you're only doing that for a reason. I think Yzerman has seen St. Louis a couple of times lately."
TSN's Darren Dreger reported Friday that Yzerman had suggested to those close to him that, if there is a deal to be made on Drouin, he'd prefer to see the player sent west.
"That doesn't exclude teams from the east," Dreger writes, "it just means Eastern Conference clubs will have to pay a premium to get in the game."
That premium and Drouin's value in general will be difficult to determine for the Blues, Rangers, Canadiens or any of the league's other teams.
But, unrealized potential or no, there's no doubting that Drouin would be a significant addition to any team and specifically the Blues. With the ice in St. Louis titled to the backend, the team continues to struggle coming out of the holiday break. The Blues have now lost four-straight after beating the Minnesota Wild on New Year's Eve.
In those games they've been held to one goal twice and scored more than two goals only once, on Wednesday against the Colorado Avalanche.
Drouin, a guy who has scored just 6 goals and collected just 40 points in 89 NHL games over the last two seasons, wouldn't walk right in and solve St. Louis' scoring issues, but he's the kind of prospect who can offer impact now, while hopefully developing for the future.
A deal wouldn't be easy to enact, but with the Lightning seeking defenseman and the Blues' employing a glut of talented blueliners, need certainly seems to align.
Interestingly, Friedman also revealed as part of Friday's radio spot that David Backes may not be long for the St. Louis organization. Talented though he may be, the issue, as it always seems to be, is valuation and its impact on finances.
Per Friedman, Ryan Kesler's six-year, $41.25 million contract is something of a starting point for Backes in negotiations. With Backes closing in on his 32nd birthday, it would be difficult for Armstrong to justify that term, even for the Blues' captain.
Yes, Backes remains a top contributor, but that may actually be something of an indictment for a leading forward on a team that just can't seem to score, or, in the longer view, get the job done in the season's most important moments.
