According to Andy Strickland of TrueHockey.com , the St. Louis Blues have traded right winger Matt D’Agostini and a seventh-round pick in 2015 to the New Jersey Devils for a fourth- or fifth-round pick. D’Agostini has only appeared in 16 games for the Blues this season, posting just one goal and one assist.
According to Tom Gulitti’s twitter , a Devils’ reporter for The Record , the Blues will receive a fourth-round pick and keep their seventh-round pick if the Devils qualify or re-sign D’Agostini. If the Devils fail to qualify or re-sign him, the Blues receive a fifth-round pick and lose the seventh-round pick to the Devils.
T.J. Oshie has been out for a little over a week due to a rib injury but is expected to return to the Blues Saturday. Trading D’Agostini to the Devils might have been a chance to free up a spot for Oshie. It couldn’t hurt, as D’Agostini’s numbers have dropped consistently since the 2010-11 season.
D’Agostini was drafted in the sixth-round of the 2005 NHL draft by the Montreal Canadiens and was traded to the Blues in 2010. The following season was D’Agostini’s best of his career, as he played in all 82-games for the Blues and finished with 46 points.
The Devils surely aren’t bringing in a guy thats going to add a lot of offense out of the gate, especially since D’Agostini has only played in 16 games. If given the chance to play, D’Agostini has the quickness and shot to do some damage, and anything is possible in a new setting.
Trades can make or break a players season, or even their career, but this seems to be the best fit for both D’Agostini and the Blues. St. Louis needed to open up space for T.J. Oshie’s return while D’Agostini will be a restricted free agent this upcoming offseason and wasn’t seeing much playing time.
The Devils need more offense to compliment Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias, though D’Agostini may not be the answer. The Devils beat the Carolina Hurricanes Thursday, ending a three-game skid in Martin Brodeur’s return after missing the last nine games.
There’s no telling how much the Devils will use D’Agostini in the upcoming weeks, but it sure does take a lot off the St. Louis Blues and open up a few changes in the Devils’ locker room. Will Matt D’Agostini make an impact with the Devils after struggling with the Blues to start the season?