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Welcome Patrik Berglund to the trade rumor mill

Blackhawks Blues Hockey

St. Louis Blues center Patrik Berglund celebrates after scoring a third-period goal to tie the game at 5-5 and send it to overtime during an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2013, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Chris Lee)

AP

We can probably thank Oilers beat writer Jim Matheson, with the Edmonton Journal, for kicking off the most recent round of Patrik Berglund trade speculation.

From an article published yesterday:

If the Edmonton Oilers are indeed sniffing around St. Louis Blues centre Patrik Berglund, who is currently playing left wing on that stacked team because the team has Paul Stastny, David Backes and Jori Lehtera firmly planted at centre, the Blues conceivably are asking about Jordan Eberle in a package.

Nobody’s saying it would ever be a one-for-one arrangement because Eberle has more currency around the league as an offensive weapon (76- and 65-point NHL seasons on his resume) than the six-foot-three, 217-pound Berglund and he makes considerably more money than the Swede for longer term, but Eberle could take Berglund’s spot as a winger in St. Louis.

This isn’t the first time Berglund’s name has been brought up as a possible fit in Edmonton (see: April), but with Oilers GM Craig MacTavish reportedly eager to make a move for a center, it’s no surprise his name’s being raised again.

The fact is, most teams don’t have a surplus of quality centers, and with the list of pending UFA centers being so thin, Berglund, just 26 years old and signed through 2016-17 for a cap hit of $3.7 million, is an obvious target.

Berglund only has two goals and two assists in 21 games, but as Matheson notes, he’s been used in more of a checking role under Blues coach Ken Hitchcock.

In Sochi, Berglund was Henrik Zetterberg’s replacement in the top six for silver-medal-winning Sweden. In Edmonton, he’d immediately become their most qualified second-line center, behind Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.

That’s not to say Berglund is bound to be dealt, or that it’s bound to be to Edmonton if he is. It’s worth noting, however, that, per CapGeek, Berglund has a limited no-trade clause that kicks in July 1, 2015, after which he can reject trades to seven teams.