Krug’s Refusal to Waive No-Trade Clause Comes Back to Bite Blues

At the time, the Blues were panicking, having just lost Alex Pietrangelo to the Vegas Golden Knights. In an effort to replace his production, the team gave Krug a monster deal with favorable conditions. He’s now taking advantage.

Meanwhile, multiple reports indicate that Nick Leddy, Justin Faulk, and Colton Parayko have not been approached by Blues’ GM Doug Armstrong to waive their no-trade clauses. These are the other defenseman on the Blues roster the Flyers might be interested in. It remains to be seen if St. Louis will turn to any of these players and ask them to consider a deal.

While trade discussions continue, it is believed that alternative options were explored earlier in the day. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that Flyers’ GM Daniel Briere has been actively seeking other trade options or potential new destinations to flip Krug. However, unless there are significant changes, the original deal is likely to remain in a state of uncertainty.

As the situation evolves, it remains to be seen how the Flyers and Blues will navigate the challenges posed by Krug’s reluctance to waive his no-trade clause. The one thing that seems clear is that the Blues’ decision to grant Krug a full no-trade clause while denying Alex Pietrangelo a no-move clause in the past has seemingly backfired. At the very least, it has complicated their efforts to move on from Krug and alleviate salary cap constraints.

Not to mention, there’s often an interesting dynamic that occurs after a player refuses to waive their no-trade but becomes aware the team is considering or looking to move them. It doesn’t always make for smooth sailing between the team and the player after a trade fails to take place.