NHL Trade Secrets: What the St. Louis Blues and Toronto Maple Leafs Are Willing to Risk in Their Next Big Deal

When you peek behind the curtain at the St. Louis Blues’ top trade prospects, brace yourself—these aren’t your run-of-the-mill, cheap salary cap fillers. Nope. Every marquee name on the block carries a hefty price tag north of $6 million, most locked in with multi-year deals and plenty of no-trade strings attached. It’s a bit like trying to unload a luxury yacht in a marina full of barges—most playoff-bound teams are strapped for cap space, sitting well under the $3 million mark, making these Blues’s players a tough sell without some savvy financial juggling. Guys like Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou are commanding eight-figure cap hits, while veterans from Justin Faulk to Jordan Binnington come with their own contractual complexities. To swing any deals come deadline day, St. Louis might have to get creative by retaining salary or swallowing some cash back. And lurking just beneath the big names are potential moves involving players like Pius Suter and Mathieu Joseph, keeping things spicy amid the trade chatter. For a deep dive into the fine print of what this means for the Blues and the broader trade market, you really want to LEARN MORE.

All the St. Louis Blues top trade candidates come with term and at $6 million-plus

Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic: The St. Louis Blues have several players listed on trade watch boards, but all the top players listed come with cap hits over $6 million. 10 of the 16 teams that are in playoff positions have less than $3 million in cap space.

Robert Thomas (five years at $8.125 million with a NMC), Jordan Kyrou (five years at $8.125 million with a NMC), Justin Faulk (one-year at $6.5 million with a 15-team no-trade list), Colton Parayko (four years at $6.5 million with a NMC), Brayden Schenn (two years at $6.5 million with a 15-team no-trade list) and Jordan Binnington (one year at $6 million with a 14-team no-trade list).

For the Blues to move any of the above at the trade deadline, they’d likely need to retain salary or take back money.

Pius Suter, Oskar Sundqvist and Mathieu Joseph are other potential Blues who could be on the move.

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Toronto Maple Leafs trade tiers

Jonas Siegel of The Athletic: From who is staying to who is likely gone, trade tiers for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Untouchable franchise cornerstones – Auston Matthews and William Nylander

Almost certainly going nowhere – Easton Cowan, Matthew Knies, Jake McCabe, Chris Tanev, John Tavares, and Joseph Woll

Contractual stuff means they’re likely staying put – Max Domi (two years at $3.75 million and a 13-team no-trade list), Dakota Joshua (two years at $3.25 million), Matias Maccelli (pending RFA at $3.4 million), Morgan Rielly ($7.5 million and a NMC – could be an offseason discussion), and Anthony Stolarz (four-year contract kicks in after the season at a $3.75 million cap hit).

Likeliest to move – Calle Jarnkrok (pending UFA at $2.1 million), Scott Laughton (pending UFA, gave up a first and prospect last year for him), and Bobby McMann (pending UFA at a $1.35 million cap hit).

A move would be mildly surprising – Brandon Carlo (one year left at $3.485 million – they give up a 2026 first and Fraser Minten last year – would need good value back), Steven Lorentz (two years at $1.35 million) and Nicolas Roy (one year left at $3 million).

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A move wouldn’t be surprising – Simon Benoit (one-year left at $1.35 million), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (two years at $3.5 million – may take a first to move him), Philippe Myers (one-year left at $850,000), Nick Robertson (pending RFA), and Troy Stecher (pending UFA).

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