Blues moves restock system with waves of talent

From the day before the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline through the 2026 NHL Draft, the St. Louis Blues completed a seismic shift in team personnel over the span of just four months and injected the organizational pipeline with a stable of young, highly-skilled talent at all development levels that will define the next generation of Blues hockey.

In March, the Blues elected to move veteran stalwarts Justin Faulk and Brayden Schenn at the trade deadline, both of whom were on the back side of their multi-year contracts signed with the club and set to expire in 2027 and 2028, respectively. Those trades signaled a changing of the guard among the Blues' roster to shift to a younger core built around the likes of Robert Thomas, Jake Neighbours, Jimmy Snuggerud, Dylan Holloway, and Philip Broberg.

On June 23, the Blues leveraged one of their most valuable assets in trading Jordan Kyrou to the Washington Capitals in exchange for 25-year old former first-round draft pick Connor McMichael, 2025 second-round selection Milton Gastrin, and the Capitals' No. 16 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. McMichael was acquired to help fill a variety of roles within the NHL roster now, while Gastrin injected a high-skill, tenacious center into the Blues’ loaded minor-league system of developing prospects that was recently ranked 10^th in the NHL by The Athletic. 

Overall, these three trades subtracted three veterans from the NHL roster but gave the Blues a collection of 11 new players or assets leading into the Draft, providing the team with the unique potential to simultaneously reshape the current NHL team and the system for the upcoming season and years to come.

Blues Moves Since Trade Deadline

March 6: Blues trade forward Brayden Schenn to the New York Islanders in exchange for Jonathan Drouin, Marcus Gidlof, a 2026 1st round pick (No. 29), and a 2026 3rd round pick (No. 76)

March 6: Blues trade defenseman Justin Faulk to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Justin Holl, Dmitri Buchelnikov, a 2026 1st round pick (No. 15), and a 2026 3rd round pick (No. 73) 

June 23: Blues trade Forward Jordan Kyrou to the Washington Capitals in exchange for Connor McMichael, Milton Gastrin, and a 2026 1st round pick (No. 16)

Entering the 2026 NHL Draft, the Blues held a war chest of draft picks, in large part due to the trades pulled off by Blues President of Hockey Operations and then-General Manager Doug Armstrong at the deadline. These moves gave Armstrong and new General Manager Alexander Steen the freedom necessary to go after youthful players of the same age group who can build together with the Blues for years to come.

Blues Draft Picks Entering the 2026 NHL Draft

Round 1: No. 11 (STL), No. 15 (from DET), No. 16 (from WSH), No. 29 (from NYI)

Round 3: No. 73 (from DET via SJS), No. 75 (STL), No. 76 (from NYI via NJD)

Round 4: No. 107 (STL), No. 123 (from NJD via DAL)

Round 5: No. 139 (STL), No. 150 (PIT pick swap)

Round 6: No. 171 (STL)

Round 7: No. 203 (STL)

On the first day of the NHL Draft, the Blues leveraged their wealth of assets and traded the No. 15 and No. 29 overall picks to the Anaheim Ducks for forward Mason McTavish. Currently 23 years old and under club control through the 2030–31 season, McTavish fits the Blues' mold of being competitive with a young core of players while his age allows him to build with the rest of the group. The Blues will continue to look to young players like McTavish, as well as skillful prospects, to fill the holes on the team as they move forward.

Blues Acquisitions in the Draft

Round 1: Blues select forward Tynan Lawrence with the No. 11 overall pick, Blues acquire forward Mason McTavish for the No. 15 and No. 29 overall picks, Blues select forward Maddox Dagenais with the No. 16 overall pick

Round 3: Blues acquire defenseman Brandon Carlo for the No. 73 and No. 76 overall picks, Blues select defenseman Luke Schairer with the No. 75 overall pick

Round 4: Blues select defenseman Landon Nycz with the No. 107 overall pick, Blues select goaltender Vladimir Proskurin with the No. 123 overall pick

Round 5: Blues select defenseman Nicholas Bogas with the No. 139 overall pick, Blues select forward Carter Stevens with the No. 150 overall pick

Round 6: Blues select forward Lars Steiner with the No. 171 overall pick 

Round 7: Blues select forward Colin Fitzgerald with the No. 203 overall pick

Coming out of the 2026 NHL Draft, the Blues organizational depth chart now features an incredible total of 17 former first-round draft picks among its ranks – seven of whom have been selected over the past four drafts. Previously defined by its veteran talent that helped the team win the 2019 Stanley Cup, the Blues roster currently features just seven players who will begin the 2026-27 season at age 30 or above.

In addition to being the last draft to be overseen by Armstrong, the 2026 NHL Draft will be remembered for ushering in a new era of hockey in St. Louis. An era that will be defined by how well and how fast its collection of highly-touted, young talent grows with each other and develops into a cohesive unit that is greater as a team than as individual players. The Blues drafting players such as Tynan Lawrence and Maddox Dagenais, as well as trading for McTavish, served to double down on the young core that Armstrong and Steen have been aggressively compiling. The franchise is set up with many layers of prospects at a variety of ages and development steps who are primed to help the Blues win now at the start of Steen’s tenure as general manager and potentially for well into the future.