The St. Louis Blues were sellers at the trade deadline, but still made the playoffs. Not many teams who trade their top defenseman for a first round pick win playoff a series.
After selected a defensemen with their first pick, the Blues will look to add scoring with Pierre-Olivier Joseph. Many experts have used the word sleeper to describe the 
Chambly, PQ native.
Over the past two season in the QMJHL, Joseph has improved and shown why at only 17 people expect him to turn into a solid defenseman in the NHL. Most believe he will become a shutdown defensive minded player as he grows into his body and skillset.
St. Louis has a stockpile of blue liners in their system. Nobody knows if many of them are or will be NHL ready. With late first round picks being a crap shoot, drafting a teenager who can develop for a couple more years in juniors seems a logical choice.
People may rave about the play in his own zone but Joseph have proven to be a two-way player scoring 39 points in 62 games last season. He comes from NHL level stock as his older brother Mathieu played for Canada in the World Juniors and led his juniors team to the Memorial Cup tournament.
Under Ken Hitchcock the Blues didn’t look for mobility in their d-core. Instead they often opted for veterans or physical bodies to fir the system. With new brains behind the bench, mobility and speed will be vital to their success.
As he puts on weight and grows into his adult body, Joseph will easily project to be a top four defenseman for the Blues. The trade to get a second top round pick will pay dividends for St. Louis in two or three years.
With the 27th pick in the 2017 NHL Amateur Draft, the St. Louis Blues select Pierre-Oliver Joseph-defenseman-from the Charlottetown Islanders.
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