Prior to the surprising T.J. Oshie trade, the St. Louis Blues had another player popping up in several trade rumors – Kevin Shattenkirk. The defenseman was believed to be on the market, but eventually Shattenkirk’s agents stated that he wouldn’t be leaving the Blues. So, who were the Blues talking to?
According to CSNNE, the Blues were in talks with both the New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers.
Per a league source, there have been discussions over the past few weeks between the Blues and both the Rangers and Flyers about Shattenkirk, and there’s a fair chance he could be on the move this summer.
Again, Shattenkirk’s agent has already stated the rumors are not true, but it’s highly possible the Blues at least had a few discussions with other teams and gauged the level of return they might be able to fetch for their All-Star skater. The Flyers and Rangers are directly mentioned in the report above, but the Columbus Blue Jackets were in quite a few rumors as well.
Now that the Blues have made a major change to their roster in Oshie, it’s difficult imagining any of these Shattenkirk rumors coming to fruition. That’s not to say they never will – the Blues are facing a daunting task of having to give Shattenkirk a new contract after 2016-17 and already have some expensive defensemen on the books – but finding even an acceptable return for a player of Shattenkirk’s caliber might prove impossible.
