You can expect negotiations between the Blues and defenseman Eric Brewer to pick up as soon as the Blues offer Brewer a contract extension.
This is not to suggest that Brewer is growing impatient with his current team.
As we have previously mentioned, preliminary discussions have begun, and now the ball is in the Blues court.
The Blues realize a deal can get done very quickly and are in no hurry to start exchanging numbers.
Brewer has told me he wants to stay in St. Louis and the Blues are well aware of his desire to stay. He has admitted that the grass isn’t always greener somewhere else.
He’s also intelligent enough to recognize that Blues Head Coach Andy Murray supplies a game plan that suits Brewer’s skills.
Brewer is not one to criticize any of his previous coaches, but the positive effect Murray has had on Brewer’s career is pretty obvious. Murray has resurrected his game back to an elite level D-man.
If it wasn’t for Murray it is easy to question whether or not Brewer could command a three to five year contract in the neighborhood of four million dollars per season.
At the end of the day this is what Brewer can expect to receive, whether it comes from the Blues or from a different team remains to be seen.
I don’t think the Blues will be willing to go as high as four million per season but they will certainly need to be in the same area code if they want to retain him.
The contract the Blues offer will certainly give a clear indication of where Brewer fits in among the club’s core defenseman.
Jay Mckee signed a four-year deal worth 16 million last summer.
Do the Blues fit Brewer in above or below Mckee? It is important to understand that it’s a different marketplace and teams are in different positions now than where they were last summer.
If Brewer is going to accept the deal he will obviously have to agree with how the Blues view him as the organization moves forward.
Blues President John Davidson will balance his assessment of Brewer with what Brewer can bring to the organization in a trade.
The Blues are willing to only go so high and if they can’t reach a deal by the deadline they will have no problem moving him by the end of the month.
The Blues are prepared to stretch out the negotiations with Brewer until the final bell rings on February 27th.
Davidson and Larry Pleau are being smart by playing it safe and feeling out their potential free agents contractually while continuing to field offers.
Ultimately the determining factor as to what free agents the Blues elect to hang on to will depend on what the Blues are able to get for that player in a trade.
Of course if the player indicates that he doesn’t want to remain in St. Louis then they will do everything they can to move that player.
The hard part for the Blues will be trying to maximize their assets value and wanting to build with players at a reasonable price.
Don’t be surprised if the Blues elect to move certain guys like Keith Tkachuk and Bill Guerin sooner than later.
That may be the wisest approach.
There have been a decent number of trades over the last week and we will continue to see more on an everyday if not every other day basis.
It comes down to supply and demand. How many teams will be bidding on a player like a Keith Tkachuk?
Three, four, five?
A club will have an easier time maximizing return if several teams are bidding off one another.
We see it every year. It is hard to say how many teams are looking to add by the deadline but you can probably guess it’s somewhere between 12-16.
You can reduce that number by two after the deals Dallas and Calgary recently made.
These teams are now done unless they trade dollar for dollar which is very difficult to do the closer you get to the deadline. Matching dollar for dollar on the day of the deadline is pretty much impossible.
You have to factor in cap room and cap position, this is why we rarely see spur of the moment trades anymore.
We used to see a flood of trades up to the deadline in the past. Teams are now in such a small distance from the cap, several clubs may only have one or two million dollars of room to work with.
Every team is listening closely to see if the market is increasing or decreasing.
If a club waits too long they will risk not getting as much in return.
The Blues could care less about trading a player like a Tkachuk or Guerin inside the division. If the Blues feel they get maximum return from a team like Detroit, then Davidson won’t hesitate to pull the trigger.
Remember these guys are rentals and the Blues will be seeking at least a first rounder in exchange for either player.
Ladislav Nagy is a different player than Tkachuk, but the fact that Phoenix got a first round pick for him definitely caught the Blues attention when you consider Nagy is also rental player.
He’s also only 27 years old and loaded with ability, but still a rental.
If the Blues are going to re-sign either Tkachuk or Guerin in the off season they better be prepared to pay either one at least what Doug Weight is making. Weight makes 3.5 million through the end of next season. Just like Brewer is working off of what Mckee is earning, these guys will want to be paid right there with the highest paid forward on the team.
EJ picks and agent, or excuse me I meant family advisor.
Blues future cornerstone defenseman Erik Johnson will sign with respected agent Pat Brisson following his season at the University of Minnesota. This is a good move for Johnson. Brisson also has Sidney Crosby among his list of high profile clients.
Brisson is currently serving as a family advisor to Erik, Johnson can’t sign with an agent until he decides to turn pro under NCAA rules.
Ekcellent Host!
It was good to finally meet Eklund face to face this past weekend in Philadelphia. The guy truly has his heart in the right place. He cares about the game and is certainly doing his part to promote the NHL. Whether you want to believe it or not, the guy has truly impacted the sport in a positive way.
Now while Ek is having a positive impact on the NHL, what I saw from the officials last Saturday in Philadelphia was a disgrace!
Blues center Peter Cajanek received a holding penalty with four seconds left in regulation with the scored tied at three.
The infraction took place in the neutral zone and the Flyers player was not in position to score. He wasn’t prevented from scoring either.
I understand Cajanek put himself in position to get called by having one hand on his stick and engaging with the Flyers player in the manner that he did.
I don’t like it when a player is penalized for simply competing. These guys have to be allowed to compete. If Cajanek was being lazy on the play it would be easier to blame him for taking the penalty.
The fact of the matter is that his stick was on the ice the entire time and the play was nothing more than stick on stick contact.
Where has the referee’s feel for the game gone?
Ian Walsh was standing two feet away from the play and was looking directly at both players.
He didn’t call the penalty.
Instead it was Dan O’Rourke that raised his right arm from the other end of the rink about 100 feet away.
Why make that call at this time of the game.
In my opinion when an official from the opposite side of the ice makes a call when his partner is skating right with the play, he is doing nothing more than showing up the other referee.
It’s all about the ego of the official; in this case it was O’Rourke’s ego that got the best of him.
Philadelphia was handed a four on three powerplay to begin the overtime period and wasted little time before they capitalized.
Philadelphia officials after the game agreed that it shouldn’t have been a penalty to begin with and the referee’s would have heard no complaints from the Flyers bench if no call were made.
Let the players decide the outcome of a well-played game by both clubs. The league needs to correct this as soon as possible and force the officials to use common sense when these situations take place.
Blues Clues!
Defenseman Jay Mckee skated on his own Monday and for the first time in a while came out feeling good. He will continue to increase his workouts as he recovers from an ongoing pelvic injury. There remains no timetable on his return.
Dan Hinote is back practicing with the club. He could return to play by the middle of the week if not by Friday. He still needs to test his shoulder by participating in contact drills before he is cleared to play.
Christian Backman is healthy enough to return to the lineup Tuesday vs. San Jose but may not be inserted into the lineup just yet. Andy Murray did not give Backman a vote of confidence on Monday and it is obvious he is looking for Backman to add some determination to his game. Backman has some serious potential, and the club rewarded him with a long-term deal in the summer. They want results from the gold medallist and are hoping he comes back hungry and motivated to elevate his game. It is safe to see the organization has not gotten what they expect out of him this season. Injuries have certainly been a factor.
More to come,
Andy Strickland
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St Louis Blues Blogger •1380 ESPN • 
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