3 Trades New Jersey Devils Can Still Make Before Season Starts

Vladimir Tarasenko trade

Yeah, we’re still here. Bally Sports Midwest reporter Andy Strickland says that Vladimir Tarasenko has people raving about how good he looks both on and off the ice. Word is he arrived at training camp in great shape. Of course, that is what is going to come out. All offseason, there were reports teams were concerned about Tarasenko’s shoulder when discussing a trade. He’s missed most of the last two seasons with injuries, and teams are obviously skeptical.

The Blues aren’t going to give Tarasenko away. If they were just looking for salary cap space, this deal would have been done already. It sounds like St. Louis still thinks a king’s ransom can be had in a Tarasenko trade. It’s hard to see some of the trades across the league that come for star players in their late 20s and understand that your star just doesn’t have the same value.

Once we get closer and closer to the season, the Blues will face more pressure to make a move. Tarasenko officially requested a trade. The Blues still have to re-sign Robert Thomas. There are moves this team wants to make moving forward.

There are few teams that can actually make a Tarasenko deal work. One of the other teams reportedly in on Tarasenko was the New York Islanders. With new deals for Kyle Palmieri, Ilya Sorokin, Casey Cizikas, and Adam Pelech, along with free agent signings Zach Parise and Zdeno Chara, there’s no way the Islanders can fit any kind of salary on the books. The Devils are probably one of the few options for the Blues, and they are likely the only option if they want someone to eat his entire salary. Tarasenko has a no-trade clause, so if he doesn’t want to go to New Jersey he’s not coming, but it’s looking like it’s either New Jersey or St. Louis for Tarasenko this season.