The Edmonton Oilers and St. Louis made a major blockbuster trade on Wednesday. The Oilers sent 22-year old Magnus Paajarvi and a second round pick in 2014 for forward David Perron.
The trade liberated a ton of cap space for the Blues who still have a number of restricted free agents to sign. Perron took up a cap hit of $3.8 million next season and a total of $12.25 million over the next three years. Paajarvi only has a cap hit of $1.525 million.
"We certainly didn't make this trade just for salary-cap purposes," Blues general manager Doug Armstrong asserted. "If we were going to make a move, we wanted to add a player that we think fits into our organization where we are today and where we are moving forward. To get a young player that has obviously been highly thought of in his draft year and come over to North America, has done his apprenticeship in the American Hockey League ..."
Perron scored 25 points in 48 games during the 2012-13 season but only managed two points in six playoff games. Meanwhile, Paajarvi has struggled in his three NHL seasons with only 58 points in 163 games played. He managed 16 in 42 games this past season and has never eclipsed the 15 goal mark.
"I'm very surprised. I know how it is," Paajarvi told NHL.com in a telephone interview. "I know it's business, but it came as a shock. ... I'm a little bit overwhelmed. It is what it is. All I can say is I had a great time and I can speak good of Edmonton, and coming to St. Louis, it's a new chapter. I'm actually excited to come to a contending team right away. I haven't been in the playoffs yet in three years, so hopefully I can contribute to the team and do what I need to do."