While waiting for the cap relief that comes with placing Alexander Steen on long-term injured reserve, the Blues can’t rush out and sign any free agents to large deals. There’s also the Vince Dunn situation to take into consideration - the defenseman hasn’t signed his new contract yet, and he is in for a bit of a raise.
To get around that, Doug Armstrong has invited Mike Hoffman to skate with the team on a professional tryout basis. Hoffman has spent most of his career as an offensive threat, cracking 25 goals every complete season that he’s played in the NHL Last season, he lead the Florida Panthers with 29 goals scored, plus 30 assists.