It has been an expensive summer for the Blues, with $130 million in contract extensions doled out to young forwards Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas.

Now what happens?

Two Blues mainstays — captain Ryan O’Reilly and alternate captain Vladimir Tarasenko — have contracts that expire at the end of this coming season. The same is true for Ivan Barbashev, who’s coming off a year in which he set career highs for goals (26), assists (34) and points (60). And defenseman Niko Mikkola, who will challenge for an every-day spot in the lineup.

NHL

Blues sign Jordan Kyrou to 8-year, $65M extension

Can the Blues sign them all? Or sign any of them?

General manager Doug Armstrong and assistant general manager Ryan Miller have worked some salary cap wizardry in the past, but figuring out how to make the numbers work for the 2023-24 season will be a daunting task.

“O’Reilly, Tarasenko, Barbashev, Mikkola — these guys are all gonna be UFAs,” Armstrong said. “Right now, we’re just gonna let the season play itself out, have these guys play.”

Does that mean there will be no negotiating during the season?