NHL Trade Rumors: Kevin Shattenkirk Surprised Blues Haven’t Dealt Him Yet

Surprised the St. Louis Blues didn’t trade Kevin Shattenkirk over NHL draft weekend? He’s right there with you.

Shattenkirk’s agent, Jordan Neumann, said with the 27-year-old defenseman set to hit free agency next summer and St. Louis unlikely to meet his contract demands, he was expecting his Blues tenure to have ended by now.

“There was not and is not a definitive timeline for this to happen, but just knowing the amount of background noise and chatter that there was heading into draft weekend, I think we built up an expectation that it would happen over the weekend,” Neumann told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Monday. “Kevin and I have kept in contact every day during the last week or so. I think he understands it’s a business, so I don’t think he’s allowing himself to get frustrated. He understands that there’s really not a lot he or I can do to expedite the process.

“So we’re just going to let it take its natural course and hope for a speedy resolution. I would say at this point, Kevin and I do think it is inevitable that he ultimately will get traded. So with that in mind, I guess any player in that situation would certainly hope it would be sooner rather than later.”

Neumann added: “Kevin loves it in St. Louis. He’s really enjoyed his time. His career has really taken off there. But at the same time, he’s a very smart young man, and we completely understand the business. It would be naive to say we didn’t expect (a trade) to be coming.”

Shattenkirk’s name was mentioned in several pre-draft trade rumors, but no team offered a package the Blues deemed suitable, according to general manager Doug Armstrong.

“Maybe my asking price is too high, or maybe I value him higher than other people,” Armstrong told reporters Friday, via the Post-Dispatch. “But I haven’t been anywhere close to what I think is representative of the value of Kevin Shattenkirk.”

Shattenkirk, who tallied 14 goals and 30 assists in 72 games this past season, is set to make $4.25 million in 2016-17.

Thumbnail photo via Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports Images