The St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets reportedly inquired about San Jose Sharks winger Timo Meier. What assets may they use to acquire him?
The St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets reportedly inquired about San Jose Sharks winger Timo Meier. What assets may they use to acquire him?
Interest in Timo Meier grows as the number of star forwards in the trade market shrinks. With the March 3 trade deadline approaching, the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets have reportedly joined the New Jersey Devils, Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights in pursuit of a trade for the San Jose Sharks winger.
TSN's Pierre LeBrun reported Tuesday the Blues had contacted the Sharks about Meier. Having traded away Ryan O'Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko over the last two weeks, St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong wants to quickly retool his roster.
LeBrun said Armstrong could be willing to part with two of the Blues' three 2023 first-round draft picks as part of the return for Meier. Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli indicated Armstrong has done this sort of thing before, using first-round picks acquired from trading away Kevin Shattenkirk and Paul Stastny to bring in Brayden Schenn and O'Reilly.
San Jose Hockey Now's Sheng Peng doubted Armstrong will part with the Blues' own first-rounder as that could become a draft-lottery pick. He pointed out promising prospects such as Jimmy Snuggerud and Zachary Bolduc could be of interest to the Sharks.
LeBrun also said the Jets reached out to the Sharks. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff possesses just one first-rounder, but he has a promising defenseman in Ville Heinola who could become a trade chip. Cheveldayoff won't part with Cole Perfetti, but perhaps he'll dangle a prospect such as Chaz Lucius or Rutger McGroarty.
Some of these teams reportedly want to sign Meier to a contract extension before agreeing to a trade. According to LeBrun, the Sharks still haven't granted permission to his agent to speak with those clubs.