One player who could be a big trade deadline acquisition is St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk. There’s no surprise that the Blues are in the midst of a bad season, and yet, he is enduring and just coming off a two-goal game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

“I mean, there’s a lot to like about how we played tonight, I thought. Thought we were pretty limiting. We were moving, we were competing. The energy was good. Just in that same situation where you got to find a way to seal it, whether that’s keeping it a 2-1 game or getting a 3-1 lead with an insurance goal there and having pressure that way. Obviously, there’s overtime opportunities, but we have to, in that situation, I think, when you have the lead going to 3rd period, you have to find ways to close it off.”

Faulk will be 34 in March. He’s seen it all and done it all. He would be a great addition to a team trying to improve their blueline. He skates great, and his offense is still good. He is an experienced player who is still averaging 23:29 a night. He can play in all situations, too. His defense isn’t perfect, but he is a very good puck transporter, and his puck possession is essentially his defense.  His giveaways are down and his blocks are up.

Faulk has a cap hit of 6.5 million, and his contract will run out at the end of next year. He has a 15-team no-trade clause. That’s not bad considering a lot of teams will be in it this year based on the early parody that we see.

If the Vegas Golden Knights want him, they would need the Blues to eat some salary. That’s possible.

Another team could be the Pittsburgh Penguins. Again, at some point, we have to come to grips with the fact that they are a contending team this year. Some aren’t there yet, I am; I see a difference in them.

I think the Blues are one of the three worst teams in hockey. I think they will see that sooner rather than later, and I think they will have to deal some players at or before the deadline and start the re-tool.