Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - With the NHL Trade Deadline approaching this Friday, talks are reportedly beginning to "heat up" between the Buffalo Sabres and St. Louis Blues.
As first reported by TSN hockey insider Darren Dreger on Tuesday, trade negotiations between the Sabres and Blues have heated up surrounding 26-year-old center Robert Thomas.
"It's not at a point yet where it is right at the finish line, that could happen with a simple phone call. But it's pretty evident that Jarmo Kekalainen, the new general manager of the Buffalo Sabres, is trying to put his stamp on this team and bolster his lineup, as they Buffalo Sabres prepare for the playoffs," said Dreger on Tuesday in a segment of "Insider Trading". "We know there's been a ton ot TSN, f conversations around Robert Thomas with Blues general manager Doug Armstrong. Some serious contenders, more tire kickers, but at this point, it does feel like the Buffalo Sabres are the frontrunner."
Dreger's colleague at TSN, Chris Johnston, adds the Sabres are being viewed around the league as a potential dark horse team that could spice up the trade deadline. He adds Buffalo is believed to be dangling the equivalent of "multiple first-rounders" in talks surrounding Thomas.
"The Blues have been looking for 3-to-4, what I'll call, premium assets in this deal, which is one of the reasons all these teams out there with that interest haven't gotten to the point where Buffalo is," said Johnston during "Insider Trading". "What I can tell you with the Sabres is the belief is they've gotten into that range of where you're talking about a package of picks, players and prospects that gets to about four players. And if you get to that stage, I do think you have to wonder, will the Sabres be able to pry a little more out of St. Louis than just Robert Thomas? They are looking for a defenseman, and the Blues do have some players at that position available in this trade market. That's another thing to consider here, as the teams continue to grind away at this deal."
TSN hockey insider Pierre LeBrun further adds the asking price right now for Thomas is too high for a team like the Montreal Canadiens, saying it doesn't make sense for them to make a deal like this and give up the assets they have.
Blues reporter with The Athletic, Jeremy Rutherford, says Thomas has not yet been asked by the Blues to waive his no-trade clause to facilitate a trade to Buffalo. Thomas is in the third year of an eight-year contract that is paying him an average annual value of $8.125 million.
Rutherford adds the Blues did have interest in Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram in trade talks this past offseason, but does not believe he would be part of a trade package involving Thomas.
Thomas is a former first-round pick of the Blues (20th overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft. He first made his mark in St. Louis as a rookie during the 2018-19 season as a 19-year-old, where he appeared in 70 games and scored nine goals, to go along with 24 assists for 33 points.
The Aurora, Ontario native was also part of that Blues team in 2019 that made their incredible run that postseason all the way to a Stanley Cup title, where he scored a goal and contributed five assists for six points in 21 playoff games.
Over his eight-year career in the NHL, to this point, Thomas has played in 509 games, where he has scored 119 goals and registered 312 assists for 431 points. In 52 career playoff games, Thomas has contributed 26 points (6+20).
Thomas' career-year with the Blues came during his 2023-24 campaign, where he scored a career-best 26 goals and added 60 assists for 86 points in a full 82 games played. That was good enough to earn him his first-and-only All-Star nod. He followed that up last season with an 81-point campaign (21+60) in 70 games played.
This season has been a bit of an injury-riddled year for Thomas in St. Louis, only appearing in 43 games, where he has 12 goals and 23 assists for 35 points.
Thomas is widely viewed as a playmaking No. 1 center in the NHL and a very solid asset at both ends of the ice.
The NHL Trade Deadline is set for Friday at 3 p.m. EST.
Related
