This is quite possibly the worst trade I've ever seen on this website. Why in the he11 would the Blues throw in Thomas in this trade? I wouldn't even do it if he was not included.

One thing you didn't put in your description: this causes Isles to have too many forwards. Someone would have to sit...

I'll let you do your thing but I'd lose my mind if this went down... to me this is "Blues finally draft a good top six center and trade him and their top prospect in a package deal for straight downgrades". At least you fired Sanford into the sun.

My issue with all these trades is why do the Islanders need Robert Thomas. Sure, he's a nice player but he's nowhere near as good a Nelson or Pageau. One theme from these trades is that everyone is seeming to make them much more complicated than it needs to be. Contradictory to what Rutherford is saying, there is no way-- IMO-- that the Islanders are gonna ship out Mayfield. He's at a great cap hit and the Islanders cannot afford to lose another Top 4 D.

This is beyond awful. The Blues are NOT trading Thomas and Perunovich, let alone for this pile of meh.

I’d do unspeakable things for the blues to offer this trade to the islanders

So--I anticipated these responses--many with which I do not disagree. This is not dissimilar to other armchair deals I've proposed here before. Call me a glutton for punishment.
I do not honestly think such a deal is feasible, nor am I trying to convince anyone otherwise. Hence, the thread title.

But there is logic behind why I would do this, if it were feasible. I don't expect any of you to agree, and I know that flamers are gonna flame anyway. But I will share my thought process.
1. Assuming Lou really covets Tarasenko: Tank's questionable health diminishes his value, Mayfield's contract enhances his. I am considering Mayfield for Tarasenko to be *almost* an even swap, and that part of the trade, alone, helps both clubs improve.
2. Bailey clears cap for NYI brings a Steen style presence, reliable two-way play, and experience. Adding another skilled defensive forward is critical if the Blues intend to get a good look at Neighbors, or give significant ice to Kostin--especially since Sundqvist isn't expected to be available to start the season. Perunovich is the piece I would give up to get Bailey. The Blues are stacked on LD with immovable contracts. There is nowhere for Perunovich on this roster. Getting value for him now is prudent--it isn't "throwing him away". What would be a waste is letting him languish in the AHL until his contract expires or his value dries up. Isles need quality defensive depth anyway, even if they keep Mayfield.
3. Bortuzzo is included for cap purposes, and as a serviceable (if unattractive) replacement for Mayfield's defensive assignments. Yes, it is a downgrade at that position, but the upgrade at forward compensates for this. And, Bortuzzo isn't just a guy--he's a very underrated player. In fact, this is the one piece of the trade that I'm most uncomfortable with, because he's a valuable asset the Blues will miss, even with Mayfield.
4. I've argued here and elsewhere that Thomas and Bellows are a wash. They were drafted a year apart at nearly the same spot. Thomas got a jumpstart on his career playing for a championship team, but he's plateau'd. Bellows has seasoned a bit longer, but has similar upside. The difference is, Thomas is a playmaker, Bellows is a finisher. The Blues need more of the latter, and I think the Isles can use more of the former.

All of that is controversial conjecture, but it's not as wild as it sounds. Though, yes, it is unrealistic.

How so? It's two defensemen (Bortuzzo and Perunovich) and two forwards (Tarasenko and Thomas) for two forwards (Bailey and Bellows) and one defenseman (Mayfield). There are no extra forwards involved, and I'm fairly sure the Isles need all the defensive depth they can get.

There are plenty of stats and expert opinions to prove that Thomas is a lot more valuable than Bellows, but if you want to stick to draft position as the sole evaluator that's your prerogative. Bellows wouldn't make the Blues or the Isles roster, Thomas could easily be the best forward on the Blues in a season or two. Look at it this way: Barzal scored 2.34 P/60 in 232 GP at 5v5 on his ELC. Thomas scored 2.07 P/60 at 5v5 in 169 GP on his ELC. Of the players drafted since 2015, they are 6th and 16th in ELC 5v5 scoring rate, respectively. Bellows played 22 games (at LW btw) and had 6 pts on his ELC - Thomas for Bellows is not anywhere near a wash, it would be throwing away one of our most valuable players.

1-This is unbridled lunacy. Like.... what???

2- Oh, it's wilder than Van.





... and quite possibly our future captain, to boot.

Bellows isn't in the NHL lineup. Isles would have too many NHL bodies

Lee-Barzal-Tarasenko
Beau-Nelson-Palmieri
Parise-JGP-Wahlstrom
Thomas
Martin-Cizikas-Clutterbuck