With the No. 10 overall pick, the St. Louis Blues select … Brayden Yager, Moose Jaw (WHL)
Why pick him? The Blues are going to take the best player they feel they can get in this slot, and 5-foot-11, 166-pound center could be a player viewed as a complementary piece playing in the future behind Robert Thomas down the middle. The Blues traded away Ryan O'Reilly to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 17 and have been toiling with the idea of converting Pavel Buchnevich into a center, which is why the cupboard for natural centers will be essential for their longer-term build.
The 18-year-old Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native is known for his offensive upside but has the ability to be a good two-way center, a player that coach Craig Berube would covet in his system and would need to play more on the interior to be a fit for Berube.
Yager has improved his numbers with Moose Jaw of the Western Hockey League in each of the past two seasons, going from 59 points (34 goals, 25 assists) during the regular season in 2021-22 to 78 points (28 goals, 50 assists) in 2022-23, being more of a set-up skater. The Blues could use skilled offensive players to not only play behind Thomas but give offensively-skilled right wing Jordan Kyrou another option, and with Yager, there's the notion of being a smart player who will understand quickly what the Blues would need from him.
Who are the other options? General manager Doug Armstrong said recently the top five picks are pretty well set and that holding the No. 6 pick and beyond, teams should have a list of 8-12 players on their board that they're prepared to select.
It's tough to determine but could Matvei Michkov, who is projected to be a top-five pick, be available? The Blues would certainly entertain any of the top forwards, including Dalibor Dvorsky, Oliver Moore, Zach Benson, Ryan Leonard, or perhaps defensemen David Reinbacher or Axel Sandin Pellinka could be viable options since St. Louis will be in need of fortifying its defensive depth.
What else is on the agenda? The Blues hold three first-round picks in this draft, but unless they can use the 10th pick and package it with Nos. 25 and 29 plus, and move up into the top nine, they will be making this selection. Otherwise, all options are on the table, including trading their picks in the 20s for players with term, under team control and in the early-to-mid, mid-to-upper 20s in age range. Armstrong could be a very busy GM fielding calls for their picks, which could see the Blues also acquiring more draft capital and move back to get more picks. They currently do not have any second-round picks.