Blues Acquire 16th Pick For '09 Selection Rundblad, Take Vladimir Tarasenko

At last year's draft, the St. Louis Blues selected defenseman David Rundblad with the 17th pick. A year later, Rundblad is on his way to the Ottawa Senators for the 16th pick in this year's draft.

With that 16th pick, the Blues selected Vladimir Tarasenko, a defenseman from Novosibirsk in the KHL.  In our mock draft, Tarasenko was selected sixth by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Here's what Raw Charge said about making that selection:

While the Lightning have multiple needs, none appear to be greater than adding scoring depth on wing.  Tarasenko (labeled "a poor-man's Alex Ovechkin" and also compared with Pittsburgh Penguins Evgeni Malkin) may be looked at as a risk due to his obligations to play in the KHL, but Steve Yzerman's approach of patience coupled with Tarasenko's own stated desires to play in the NHL, make this a risk worth taking for the Bolts.    Tarasenko is undersized (5'10") by comparison to Ovi and Malkin, but size should not be the reason to write off ability.

Head to St. Louis Game Time for more.