Barret Jackman put it best by saying Bill Guerin is one of those people you spend a few months with and you feel like you have known them for years.
It was tough for Blues Owner Dave Checketts to let go of Bill Guerin.
Checketts wanted Guerin to stay but he understood Guerin's desire to play in the playoffs.
Credit Guerin for being honest.
This season was a win-win for both Guerin and the Blues. St. Louis made a small investment and flipped it after his value skyrocketed. Guerin proved to the hockey world taht he can still play at an All-Star level and that last season was a complete write-off.
Can you blame Guerin? He understands a strong playoff run could earn him even more money this summer, not to mention he wants to win another Stanley Cup.
The Blues and Guerin never really engaged in contract negotiations although his agent Bob Murray did throw out a few comparables.
If Guerin was going to sign a contract extension it would have cost St. Louis around 4.5 million per season to get it done.
San Jose provided St. Louis with the best deal in return for the All-Star winger. The only other real contender for Guerin down the stretch on Tuesday was the New York Islanders.
Guerin had no interest in playing in New York.
I don’t want to say the chances of re-signing Guerin this summer are slim, but he will certainly be looking to capitalize financially off this season and may be out of the Blues budget.
There is no doubt Guerin is the comeback player of the year in the NHL.
The Blues thought they had a deal in place over the weekend to send Keith Tkachuk to Anaheim but sources tell me the Ducks screwed the Blues over.
The Blues deny this to be true, but I wouldn’t lie to you.
A lot of people are criticizing Brian Burke for his lack of execution at the deadline. The Ducks are still the only team that has the league’s best defenseman in Chris Pronger. As long as you have Pronger you are never out of it.
St. Louis will pay Jamal Mayers 1.2 million next season and 1.4 08-09 and 1.4 in 09-10.
It would be a shame if a deal couldn’t have been reached with Mayers who has played his entire career with the Blues.
Dave Checketts agrees saying the fact that Mayers married a St. Louis Girl and really grew up with the organization meant a lot to him.
Checketts wanted to keep Mayers in a Blues uniform and displayed some loyalty we don’t always see in pro sports nowadays.
I told Mayers what Checketts had told me and he smiled and said “Wow, that means a lot.”
As of 45 minutes before the deadline Mayers had not agreed on a contract extension. Mayers assumed he was going to be traded. At 2:20 eastern things changed and at 2:30 a deal was done.
People are out of their mind if they think Mayers is overpaid. Fans should understand that hockey people throughout the NHL appreciate this guy’s game.
Six separate teams expressed significant interest in Mayers and put offers on the table.
The Blues got a third round pick for a 39 year old Eric Weinrich last year at the deadline from Vancouver, the Blues deserve some credit for standing firm on what they wanted in return for Mayers. The Blues had no problem getting a second round pick for Mayers but never were offered a prospect that John Davidson or Larry Pleau felt was acceptable.
In order to make a deal for Mayers a team had to provide the Blues with a roster player in return. Toronto and Ottawa are two of the six teams that really made strong efforts to acquire Mayers.
If Mayers were to test the open market he would have had no problem getting a deal worth 1.5 million and above when you think about Dan Hinote is making one million dollars and George Laraque is somehow making 1.2 million with a no-trade clause.
The same goes for those fans that think the Blues overpaid for Eric Brewer. He would have had no problem getting a five year deal worth somewhere between 4.5 and 5 million per season in the open market.
Brewer made it clear to Blues Management during his contract negotiations that he wants to keep playing with his partner Bryce Salvador. Salvsdor has one year left on his deal.
The Blues wouldn't ever really consider separating Salvador and Mayers would they? That wouldn't be right, these guys are inseparable.
Players who have played with Laraque will tell you he is a complete dog and has no clue how to execute his role. He can dominate tough guys in a fight, but doesn’t truly do the job a tough guy is paid to do. Laraque needs to read “The Code.”
The Blues need players and can’t just trade away everybody. There are still games left in the season to be played. The Blues ran into the same situation a year ago when they were offered a second round pick for Blues captain Dallas Drake. They couldn’t deal him because the Blues needed guys to finish the season.
General Managers around the NHL who are receiving the entire house in return for rental players should send thank you notes to Blues GM Larry Pleau.
Pleau started this entire trend when he traded Doug weight to Carolina last season. People were critical of the Weight deal at the time, but it turned out to be a brilliant move by Pleau.
For those of you that think Pleau is just twiddling his thumbs during the trade deadline you need to think again. This guy worked extremely hard during the last few weeks and was involved every step of the way in each deal the Blues made.
Davidson has treated Pleau incredibly well since taking over and is using Pleau beautifully. If you get a chance, ask Davidson how valuable Pleau has been and I’m sure JD will fill you in.
The situation with Petr Cajanek being waived is pretty simple. All the Blues were looking to do is bruise his ego a little. The fact that 30 teams passed on Cajanek will certainly send a message to the Czech Republic native.
Andy Murray who is waiting for Cajanek to begin to play every shift/game the same way as opposed to having a strong outing every fourth game initiated this move.
This was all about sending a message to Cajanek, the Blues knew nobody was going to pick him up. In Cajanek’s defense, he has been much better as of late. As one member of the Blues organization told me, it’s time for Cajanek to get off his ass!
If Cajanek doesn’t improve his game this season then buying out his contract becomes an option. The Blues would basically take a 600,000-cap hit for the next two years if they choose to go down this road. He is protected by the CBA and can’t be sent down to the AHL this season.
I’m hearing the Blues war room erupted about an hour prior to the deadline when Boston phoned St. Louis to say they will make the Brad Boyes/ Dennis Wideman deal.
Boyes is the only player Wideman knew on the Bruins roster and is walking into unfamiliar territory. The Blues adresseda need with this move and Wideman will continue to develop into a quality D-man who will give the Bruins depth on the Blue line and on the power play.
Boyes has some nasty puck skills and will certainly give the Blues a much-needed boost in that area.
Boyes is the type of player that needs to feel important and would do well playing with a Doug Weight.
Does anybody remember the show Boyes and Patrice Bergeron put on during the 2006 World Championships? The two players obviously carried their chemistry over the NHL in Boston.
Blues center Jay McClement played against Boyes in the OHL and the AHL, they also represented Canada together in the World Juniors.
Doug Weight certainly led the Blues Tuesday night in a win over Vancouver. Weight dominated during his days in Edmonton when he was the man playing with a bunch of younger players. Weight will enjoy the role of being the guy once again as he will be counted on down the stretch to be the Blues best player night in and night out.
Did anyone catch the interview with Ottawa Sun hockey writer Bruce Garrioch during the second intermission of last Saturday’s game between the Senators and the Buffalo Sabres?
I have never seen a more ridiculous display of homerism from this Buffalo studio host Kevin Sylvester. Garrioch was asked to share his thoughts on the Chris Drury hit and this Sylvester guy got all upset with Garroich who gave an honest answer. The two obviously disagreed which is fine but Sylvester came across like an amateur.
He later asked Garrioch what his thoughts were regarding the letter Sabres Owner Thomas Golisano wrote to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. When Garrioch responded by saying he thought Golisano was taking whining to a new level Sylvester interrupted and said were going to have to end this interview, you can’t come on here and talk about the Sabres Owner that way!
As a broadcaster I though the interview was handled poorly and completely unprofessional. The lack of objectivity and respect shown to his guest was nothing but a pitiful display of journalism.
Blues Clues!
Blues D-man Jay Mckee didn’t make it through the second period in his first game back after missing several weeks with a pelvic injury.
He caught toes with Canucks center Brendan Morrison during the game and felt some soreness from that point going forward. Mckee told Murray prior to the game that he wasn’t sure if his injury would hold up through the entire game.
Mckee felt he had missed enough time and wanted to get back in the lineup. He worked hard to get back but probably came back too soon as he sees the season coming to an end and wants desperately to get some games in.
Mckee did not make the trip to New York and will stay off the ice and continue doing therapy.
Dan Hinote has left for Colorado where he will undergo shoulder surgery on March eighth. Hinote won’t return to St. Louis for about a month.
The Blues never fully talked with Radek Dvorak about extending his contract. Dvorak is hoping something will get worked out by next season. He told me again that he wants to stay. He said he truly enjoys playing for Andy Murray, and loves his teammates.
I received a surprise email from former Blues and Toronto maple Leafs D-man Alexander Khavanov who is playing professionally in Switzerland. He recently spent some time with former Toronto Head Coach Pat Quinn during the Spangler Cup.
More to come,
Andy Strickland
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St Louis Blues Blogger •1380 ESPN • 
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