Reports: St. Louis Blues Trading Kevin Shattenkirk to Washington Capitals
Kevin Shattenkirk is reportedly getting dealt to the Washington Capitals.
According to a variety of reports, it sounds like St. Louis Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk is finally getting traded after roughly a year of drama surrounding his future.
The 28-year-old blueliner, who has spent all but 46 games of his 471-game NHL career in St. Louis, is reportedly headed to the Washington Capitals:
Shattenkirk will be traded to the Washington Capitals, per multiple league sources. #stlblues
— Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) February 28, 2017
Kevin Shattenkirk has been notified that he is going to Washington. Expected to be in the lineup tomorrow night at MSG vs. #NYR.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 28, 2017
Update, 9:07 PM: Jeremy Rutherford has now confirmed a report that the Blues will be receiving a 2017 first-rounder, a 2018 second-rounder, and center Zach Sanford from the Capitals:
Confirmed: #stlblues return for Shattenkirk is 1st in 2017, conditional 2nd in 2018 and forward Zach Sanford, as @Real_ESPNLeBrun reported.
— Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) February 28, 2017
He’d been considered one of the most impactful players available at the deadline, and rumors had circulated about his availability dating back to last season. The most controversial story of that variety came last week, when it was revealed that the Blues had attempted to deal him to an Eastern Conference team, but Shattenkirk refused to sign an extension with that team, therefore negating the deal.
Shattenkirk, who currently ranks fourth among NHL defensemen with 42 points (11 goals and 31 assists), wasn’t in a position elevate his status much further with the Blues. Alex Pietrangelo is entrenched as the team’s number one righthanded-shooting defenseman for years to come, and Colton Parayko has ascended to the point where he’s probably the team’s second-best all-around defenseman. While Shattenkirk is a fantastic puck distributor, he’s pretty clearly a below-average player in his own zone and has a minus-11 rating, which is the worst plus-minus among Blues defensemen this season.
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Shattenkirk was selected as an All-Star in 2015 and earned Norris Trophy votes after the 2011-12 and 2014-15 seasons. Earlier this season, we ranked him 44th on our list of the most outstanding players in Blues history.