Please don’t trade for Mike Hoffman

Last season, there were rumors of discord in the Blues’ locker room. That there was a leadership vacuum. That there were cliques.

Of course, these rumors created further rumors that this discord was a major reason for the Blues’ second half slump and eventual slide out of the playoffs - you know, never mind Jaden Schenn’s injury and other issues. The Blues needed to make a trade to shake things up at the deadline, and one of the targets was reported to be Senators winger Mike Hoffman.

A trade for Hoffman fell apart, probably because of asking price. And then...

Oh, he’s cheaper now? His skill set hasn’t dissipated, so why?

Oh.

From The Sporting News:

The report, citing court documents, said Melinda Karlsson has accused Clark of posting “over 1,000 negative and derogatory statements about me as a professional” via pseudonym accounts on social media, including at least one targeting the couple after a tragic miscarriage in March.

”Monika Caryk has uttered numerous statements wishing my unborn child dead,” Melinda said in part of the statement she gave to the courts, according to The Citizen. “She also uttered that she wished I was dead and that someone should ‘take out’ my husband’s legs to ‘end his career.’”

There’s no, absolutely no justification for this kind of behavior regardless of who your husband is, or who your alleged victim is. It’s morally repugnant and speaks to a deep-rooted problem that is beyond my pay-grade to diagnose. It’s also going to be a hatchet to the Senators’ locker room, so it makes sense that Hoffman is currently more than likely a persona non grata.

The Senators have handled this situation abysmally, as has Hoffman. News leaked out yesterday that both the team and Hoffman knew of this malicious behavior for weeks.

Hoffman has denied that his fiancee has been involved in the harassment.

Even the cloud of this situation should be troubling for the Blues, specifically for Alex Pietrangelo. He and his wife underwent a heartbreaking situation exactly like Karlsson’s in June. He very openly discusses it in a Players’ Tribune article, and the heartbreak is evident.

To place Pietrangelo in a situation where he has a teammate whose fiancee is allegedly wishing miscarriage on people and gloating about it when it happens is beyond inappropriate. To force Pietrangelo’s wife to do team spouse activities and to associate with someone who has been accused of cyberstalking victims of miscarriage would be a disrespectful affront to her.

The Blues could use Hoffman on the ice. He’d be a valuable player. But it’s not worth it.