Blues acquire veteran defenseman Zbynek Michalek from Arizona
Just a few hours before Monday's trade deadline, the Blues finally found a new defenseman.
St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong pulled the trigger for veteran Zbynek Michalek and a conditional third-round pick from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for prospect Maxim Letunov. Michalek has two goals and six assists in six games for the Coyotes, who are out of the playoff race in the Western Conference.
As a solid two-way player at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, he will be expected to help shore up a defense that has struggled since losing All-Star Kevin Shattenkirk to an abdominal injury on Feb. 1. Shattenkirk is still tied for the team lead with 32 assists despite missing 14 games, but even though he has begun skating on his own, he's not expected back for several weeks.
Letunov was the Blues' second-round draft pick in 2014 (52nd overall).
Health will be the biggest concern for Michalek, who has missed seven games since suffering a concussion Feb. 14 against the Rangers. He told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he plans to skate for the first time Tuesday in St. Louis, and reports indicate Arizona’s draft pick will be conditional on how much he can play.
Since 2005, Z Michalek leads @NHL with 1559 blocked shots. Volchenkov (1440) and N Schultz (1381) #NHLTrade @StLouisBlues
— Darren R Pang (@Panger40) March 2, 2015
The Blues are hoping Petteri Lindbohm can help pick up some of the production, and the rookie defenseman scored at Vancouver for his second goal in six games since being called up from the American Hockey League. Michalek has shown some offensive prowess with 166 goals in 697 games, although he hasn't surpassed three goals or 15 points in a season since he tallied five goals and 14 points with the Penguins in 2010-11.
It's the third straight year Armstrong has made a deadline deal for a playoff push. Last season, he acquired Ryan Miller and Steve Ott from Buffalo, and the year before St. Louis picked up defenseman Jay Bouwmeester from Calgary.
You can follow Luke Thompson on Twitter at @FS_LukeT or email him at lukegthompson87@gmail.com.
