St Louis Blues

[doulos]

equally as important as scoring goals is preventing them - just ask tim thomas last year. and nobody has ever been as good as the blues have been at preventing goals this year. ever. you can say the team that scores the most goals in a game wins, but you can also say that the team that allows the least goals wins. st.louis just has to allow less goals every game than they score to win and so fay this year, 2.5 goals a game has been plenty - this team is number one in the league, despite their lack of goals and playoff hockey doesn't tend to bring out a run and gun style in teams.

2007 Playoffs. Dallas Stars. 3 Shutouts. Lost the series 4-3.

Preventing goals is only one aspect.

I totally hear what you're saying though. The Blues are first in the NHL for a good reason, I just see some red flags.

[27Blue]

I feel like McDonald is the key to the Blues having playoff success. He brings the sort of creativity and playmaking that they otherwise do not have. If you run the numbers from the past few seasons he has easily been their most productive powerplay scorer. Without him they are not going to have powerplay success. If they get into the sort of matchup with a strong even strength team (like the Coyotes, Stars or Sharks) then they may find themselves in a special teams battle, which would be problematic.

This is especially true because special teams become so much more important come playoff time, as it becomes tougher to score at even strength.

The good news is Schwartz could fill that role. I have long held that he is the future replacement for McDonald as the playmaker/PP-engine for the Blues and he could be forced into that role sooner than later.

I agree with your statement about MacDonald - he makes the blues offense better, especially on the powerplay. but the fact is, they are in first place this year without macdonald's offence for most of the season.

also... the only team in the league better than the blues 5 on 5 is the wings.... and nobody else is really even close to these two.

throw in the fact that the blues have had a penalty kill that has hovered around the top 5 all year and that aspect of special teams is a strength for this team. this team plays playff hockey evey game, so i think they have the potential to thrive in the post season. the only think they lack is experience throughout their line-up - that is the unknown...

[metaldude26]

I agree with your statement about MacDonald - he makes the blues offense better, especially on the powerplay. but the fact is, they are in first place this year without macdonald's offence for most of the season.

also... the only team in the league better than the blues 5 on 5 is the wings.... and nobody else is really even close to these two.

throw in the fact that the blues have had a penalty kill that has hovered around the top 5 all year and that aspect of special teams is a strength for this team. their powerplay percent may be middle of the pack, but the blues draw a ton of penalties because they get in people faces and they always have the puck. they actually have scored the 3rd most powerplay goals in the entire leage and have only 2 less than the league leading jets.... so I really don't see how their special teams could be considered a weakness. this team plays playff hockey evey game, so i think they have the potential to thrive in the post season. the only think they lack is experience throughout their line-up - that is the unknown...

This is why I question whether they will have that same success come playoff time. When things get tighter that usually brings everyone back to the margins. That means the Blues tremendous five-on-five advantage gets marginalized.

Can the Blues really elevated come playoff time? I feel like the way they are playing now is exactly how they will play in the playoffs. Another team may have more juice. I do not see them getting upset in round one and maybe not in round two, just playing devil’s advocate.

[kluu]

man, this team is seriously just rollin through into the playoffs

[stevey_c]

i've heard a lot of people saying that they have their doubts about the blues but i've just got that feeling that this could be their season. they've been doing so great lately and this is the kind of late season drive that can really be enough to get a team through to the finals. their defense has been strong and their offense has been putting up some good numbers too and this has brought them success. i think they could go all the way to the cup final and i think they could even win it too.

[Shake]

Blues sign goalie Jordan Binnington to ELC


http://blues.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=633082

[27Blue]

good day amigos...

just a heads up that i will be doing my best to keep you all up to date on all things "Blues"... in between signings, trades, firings, prospects, etc... i will make it my mission to convince you all that Alex Pietrangelo is, in fact, the best defenceman in the nhl. peace.



just a quick look at a busy summer for the Blues and what items of business remain on the agenda:

after signing:
-Vladimir Tarasenco to a 3 year entry level contract

and resigning:
-David Perron to a 4 year contract
-Chris Stewart to a 1 year contract
-Jamie Langenbrunner to a 1 year contract
-Scott Nichol to a 1 year contract
-Barret Jackman to a 3 year contract

the Blues will be looking to lock up TJ Oshie to a long term deal. Oshie and the Blues are headed for arbitration on July 20.

it is no secret that Armstrong has been trying to find a defensive partner for Pietrangelo all summer, but without success to this point.

“We want to find a top-four defenseman,” Blues general manager Doug Armstrong said. “If we could add one player that we feel really comfortable about being in the four, then we really feel good about our group.
“When I view a top-four player, it’s someone that’s a 5-on-5 player obviously and potentially touch both ends of the special teams.”
“To say that you want to find a player to play with Petro … Petro can play with anybody,” Armstrong said. “I think Petro could move to the left and play with (Shattenkirk).”
“Whoever we find there has to be a player that can help him move the puck,” Hitchcock said. “Their ability to exit the zone quickly is going to be really important.”

With all worthy free agents signed elsewhere, Armstrong will need to explore the trade route to get anything done. To Armstrong's credit, he has indicated that he will wait for the right player for the team and won't rush out to make a deal just to fill the hole. Ian Cole is ready to take on a top 6 role with the team, so if the Blues need to play through part of the season before making a deal, they feel that they can wait. Armstrong knows that the team has a need and he has shown that he is not afraid to make moves to improve the team.

Okay. That's the news for now. On to all things Pietrangelo:

If you have six minutes of your life to give to the following video (sorry about the questionable quality), you will see, perhaps, the best game played by a defenceman in the NHL last year. It is a game from last February between the Blues and the Sharks, and it has become legendary amongst Blues fans.... forget about the 2 goals and the assist that he records and simply watch him play defence.

From the original poster of the video:

A little ~6 minute isolation of Pietrangelo last night. He was on the ice for only a total of 4-5 shots against, which is astonishing given his 26 minutes of ice time and almost 5 of that being on the PK.

He just doesn't allow the Sharks any sort of easy entry into the zone and shows incredible poise with the puck in the defensive end under pressure. He makes smart decisions with the puck allowing for easy transition out of the defensive zone and through the neutral zone.

The few shots against that he's on the ice for, he clears the rebound very cleanly, often, again, transitioning it out of the zone.

Most impressive was arguably his PK play itself, the Sharks just had no opportunity to even enter the zone, let alone set up a powerplay while he was on the ice.

There was about another ~5-6 minutes of him making simple, smart reverses or passes either in the defensive end or while QBing the powerplay that was left out for redundancy. He did make one minor mistake on the cycle early in the game that resulted in a scrambled possession, but other than that, an impressively mistake-free game.

Simply, as a fan of hockey, if you did not watch this game tonight, then do so and focus on Pietrangelo and his play. Not only defending the player with the puck but also when the puck carrier is attack his defense partner (Colaiacovo). The puck support that Pietrangelo was giving all night was impressive to say the least. His one on one puck battles were ridiculous, his decision making, his gap control, the list goes on. This game was a coach's dream.

Maybe it was boring if you like flashy offense but if you are a fan of the technical, fundamentals of hockey, it was a masterpiece by Pietrangelo tonight, and simply a privilege to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0dT1nWoOrw

[Ross The Boss Palmer]

Hahaha love it!

Per rotoworld:

Jaden Schwartz - C - Blues

Jaden Schwartz is aware he has to work a lot harder due to his diminutive size.
"There's always room for improvement," the five foot, nine inch, Schwartz said. "With me being a smaller guy, you definitely want to work on your lower body strength and make sure you're quick. If you're not as big as the other guys, you have to make sure you're quick. It's not like I didn't work hard before. But being around NHL players makes you realize how much harder you have to work and how much you have to push yourself." He is looking to crack the Blues lineup after playing seven games last season when he left Colorado College to turn pro. He is likely to make the Blues out of training camp but will need to score to prevent a demotion to the minors.
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Jul 14 - 2:09 PM



Really liking this young fella. Was very impressed watching him last season, and I think he is capable of being a game breaker for the Blues.

[bondon]

Chris Porter has been re-signed to a new one-year two-way deal.

[27Blue]

for those interested, a good breakdown of the blues 2012 draft....

http://www.hockeysfuture.com/article...2-draft-review

[bondon]

Some interesting opinions from some of the STL beat writers regarding the goalie situation next year

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colum...a4bcf6878.html

[27Blue]

A read about the Blues heading into next season...

http://interact.stltoday.com/forums/...c.php?t=900365


Of interest:

While the Blues didn't make any big splashes this summer, they can look for a boost by simply having their best offensive players remain healthy this season.

The Blues scored just 2.51 goals per game in 2011-12 to rank 21st in the League. A lot of that had to do with key offensive players missing time. Perron (24 games, concussion), Andy McDonald (57 games, concussion, shoulder), Alexander Steen (39 games, concussion) all had extended absences at varying points of the season.

The biggest addition to the Blues' roster is the 6-foot, 200-pound Vladimir Tarasenko, the team's first-round pick at the 2010 Draft who has spent the previous four seasons in the KHL. The 20-year-old winger amassed 100 points in 176 games in a career that began as a 16-year-old.

"He's obviously a right winger coming off the off wing, and I think he needs to play with people who have the ability to play a similar style," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said of the left-handed Tarasenko to the Dispatch. "For him to be effective, he's got to play in the top nine. I don't think we're thinking that he's a 20-year-old. I think we're thinking that he's a young guy that's had great experience that's really going to help him. I've talked to people that have coached him. They know age-wise he's not an older player, but experience-wise he is."

[27Blue]

(8/30/12) According to a source, Vladimir Tarasenko is scheduled to arrive in St. Louis late Friday afternoon. He is expected to take to the ice on Tuesday morning. There were concerns that a potential lockout could result in him staying in Russia, but his pending arrival shows that he is committed to playing in North America. The 6-foot, 215-pound forward is a highly-touted prospect, who is projected to make an impact in the NHL this campaign.

[27Blue]

vladamir tarasenko, the 2012-13 calder trophy favorite,
stepped onto the ice for the first time today as a member of the st. louis blues.
teammates, fans, and media joined together to welcome the russian rookie.

j. rutherford had this to say....

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/hocke...medium=twitter

[27Blue]

the number one reason that i want hockey to start again is to see Tarasenko play for the Blues... anyways, without further adoooooo, here are the Blues top 10 prospectus from Hockey Prospectus.

St. Louis Blues Top 10 Prospects

1. Vladimir Tarasenko, Right Wing
2. Jaden Schwartz, Left Wing
3. Ty Rattie, Right Wing
4. Cade Fairchild, Defense
5. Philip McRae, Center
6. Jordan Schmaltz, Defense
7. Jake Allen, Goaltender
8. Dmitrij Jaskin, Right Wing
9. Joel Edmunson, Defense
10.Jani Hakanpaa, Defense

http://www.hockeyprospectus.com/arti...articleid=1380

System Overview: The Blues have a pretty top-heavy system, with an elite prospect in Vladimir Tarasenko and two very good ones in Jaden Schwartz and Ty Rattie. While they have talent after that, those prospects tend to have question marks, and the quality certainly falls off after that top tier.