"Anytime you have a deadline, whether it's the Draft, whether it's the trade deadline or even the December (roster freeze), there are a lot of calls," Armstrong said. "This is the time of year where there is a lot of conversation and a lot of the groundwork that has been talked about between managers will have to come to a head one way or another.
"It's a busy time, but it's not like it's 24/7 on the phone," he added. "There are some teams you have nothing in common with and don't need to talk to. Teams have done their due diligence and they know the potential ways to improve their team, and they focus on those groups."
The Blues solidified their forward group with the signing of Patrik Berglund last week. Berglund would have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but was instead locked up with a five-year, $19.25 million contract extension.
So what does Armstrong expect for the Blues at the deadline?
"We're just going to take a look and see what we have," Armstrong said. "I don't see us moving a top pick or moving a top prospect for a rental player. There's always different moves, whether it's a depth move, (but what) you don't see a lot of this time of the year is hockey trades. But you never know when one of those might pop up, too."
"The conversations between managers are now at a more consistent pace," Armstrong said. "I think everybody is looking at the same thing. You look at your team and you're trying to improve your team, whether it's short term or long term. Obviously in the Western Conference, it looks like you have nine teams fighting for eight spots. We're comfortably in that group of nine… our goal is to try and stay in that grouping of eight and climb as high as we can."
