Main Photo: Mandatory Credit: James Carey Lauder-USA TODAY Sports
One of the bigger fish is officially off the market. The St Louis Blues have traded star winger Vladimir Tarasenko. St Louis makes a trade that sees him land with the New York Rangers. In addition, he will be an unrestricted free agent at the season’s end. This is a great move for them as they acquire a player with experience and talent.
Vladimir Tarasenko Gets Traded
Hearing #stlblues are trading Vladimir Tarasenko to #NYR.@DailyFaceoff
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 9, 2023
It was a matter of time before Vladimir Tarasenko was traded. The Russian winger has spent his entire career in St Louis and helped the team capture the Stanley Cup in 2019. He has been rumoured to have been moved, and finally has. The Rangers will reap the benefits for his services as he provides so much to the lineup.
How This Impacts The Rangers
Vladimir Tarasenko has been traded and his new club will reap the benefits. He is a top-six winger who has consistently been a scorer in this league. Tarasenko is a five-time 30-goal scorer and set a career-high of 40 in 2015-16. In addition, Tarasenko comes with playoff experience. He has played in over 90 games and has scored 41 goals. His best postseason run came in 2018-19. Even as a rental player, this is a massive win for the Rangers, who are in need of depth scoring. Come playoff time, you can never have too many of that.
How This Impacts The Blues
As he is a rental, it was wise to capitalize on a return for their star winger. Overall the Blues are fine for the future as they still have a core to build around. Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas each have signed long-term extensions with the club and are the future going forward. The back end still has solid pieces and Jordan Binnington is the man in the crease. You never want to say goodbye to homegrown talent, but Tarasenko was a great Blue through and through.
