St. Louis Blues’ Ryan O’Reilly, Vladimir Tarasenko out long-term

The St. Louis Blues will be without two of its top forwards – and trade chips – for at least a month.

The club announced on Monday that Ryan O’Reilly (broken foot) will be out for a minimum of six weeks, while Vladimir Tarasenko (hand) will miss four weeks.

O’Reilly, 31, has emerged as one of the NHL’s top trade chips this season after struggling in St. Louis. He’s in the last year of his seven-season deal with an AAV of $7.5 million. O’Reilly has 10 goals and 16 points in 37 games for the Blues, the team he helped lead to a Stanley Cup championship in 2019.

Tarasenko, 31, has 10 goals and 29 points for the Blues, the only team he has ever played for in his NHL career. He reportedly asked for a trade a few years ago but has remained with the Blues ever since. Injuries have impacted his past few seasons, but his strong play this year has renewed interest in his services.

St. Louis called up forward Jake Neighbours to help fill a role up front. Drafted 26th overall in 2020, Neighbours had one goal in 13 games with the Blues this season. He’s one of the team’s top young prospects, so this will be an excellent opportunity to earn more ice time.

The Blues have had a difficult season, sitting fifth in the Central Division and 10th overall in the west. They have a 5-2-3 record over the past 10 games, putting them five points behind Edmonton in the Western Conference wild-card race.

The loss of O’Reilly and Tarasenko is a sizeable loss from a competitive standpoint. Fortunately, both timelines allow for them to return well before the March 3 trade deadline, but longer-term injuries at this point definitely doesn’t help.

It’s about to get interesting, Blues fans.