Report: Blues tell teams Parayko, Thomas off the market for trades

A couple of players rumored to be moved this offseason are apparently off the market.

According to Frank Seravalli, the St. Louis Blues have notified teams across the NHL that forward Robert Thomas and defenseman Colton Parayko are no longer available to be traded.

This comes after the Blues were allegedly taking offers on both players ahead of the trade deadline this past March, but deals on either Thomas or Parayko never came to fruition, with Parayko reportedly saying no to being traded to the Buffalo Sabres.

Even if St. Louis general manager Alex Steen were to be shopping the two franchise cornerstones, it might be a tougher sell to trade both of their respective contracts. Thomas just finished the third year of his eight-year contract extension, which carries an AAV of $8.125 million through the 2030-31 season. Parayko has four more years left on his eight-year extension, which has a cap hit of $6.5 million through 2029-30. Both players currently have full no-trade clauses on their contracts. Parayko has a full NTC until the final two years of his contract, while Thomas’s NTC becomes a modified no-trade clause in July 2030.

Both players have been key members of the franchise for several years. Thomas and Parayko were on the memorable 2019 team that won the organization’s first Stanley Cup. While the Blues have been influx in recent years, making the playoffs just once in the past four years, the two have been constants in the blue and yellow.

Thomas has appeared in 530 games in his NHL career, scoring 132 goals, while ranking fifth on the franchise’s assists leaders (328), tied for 10th in points (460) and eighth in career plus/minus (+68). He’s also scored 26 points in 52 postseason contests.

Parayko has played in 800 regular-season games with the Blues, ranking him third all-time. He has scored 81 goals and 232 assists for 313 points, with another 38 points in 89 playoff games.