St. Louis trades Sillinger to Predators for forward

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The St. Louis Blues traded second-leading scorer Mike Sillinger to the Nashville Predators on Sunday night for forward Timofei Shishkanov.

Sillinger, 34, led the Blues in goals, including a team-high 11 on the power play. His 41 points in 48 games were second only to Doug Weight's 44.

"Mike Sillinger is a battle-tested veteran who will help us both offensively and defensively," Predators general manager David Poile said in a statement. "He is an all-purpose forward who can play in any situation and can play center or on the wing. He also gives us a top right-handed faceoff man to complement Yanic Perreault."

The deal could be a sign that the Blues are giving up on this season. St. Louis has reached the playoffs every season since 1980 but the Blues have an NHL-worst 30 points more than halfway through the season.

Nashville will be the 11th NHL team for Sillinger, who has 439 points in 877 career games during 15 seasons.