The St. Louis Blues are set to be an interesting team to watch in 2024-25. They made several changes in the summer and are clearly set on trying to find their way back into the playoffs.
General manager Doug Armstrong has certainly not stood pat after back-to-back seasons with no playoffs. Let’s get into why Blues fans should be optimistic in 2024-25.
1. Binnington & Hofer Are Legit
One of the club’s biggest strengths in 2023-24 was their goaltending. Both Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer played well to help keep the team in the race. For Binnington, his numbers last season were the best they’ve been since the 2018-19 season when he helped lead the team to a Stanley Cup over the Boston Bruins. He had a record of 28-21-5 and a save percentage (SV%) of .913. He also put up a goals saved above average (GSAA) of 16.6, which ranked fifth in the league. Those numbers are not to be taken lightly. He was elite in every sense of the word for the majority of last season.
As for Hofer, he had a great first full season as the club’s backup. He had a record of 15-12-1, a SV% of .913, and a 2.65 goals against average (GAA). He ranked 19th in the league in GSAA as well, right behind New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin. Those are numbers that any team would take from its backup, especially in his age-23 season. So, Blues fans should be quite optimistic about how good the team’s goaltending was last season. There’s no reason to believe it won’t be similar in 2024-25.
2. Forward Depth Is Much Improved
Armstrong made sure to make several moves in the way of forward depth this summer. They added Dylan Holloway, Mathieu Joseph, Radek Faksa, and Alexandre Texier to the group. This is far better depth than what they had in 2023-24.
They won’t have to rely on tons of scoring from Brandon Saad and Jake Neighbours like last season. Even if those two don’t reach 20-plus goals again, they should have more depth scoring and potential bouncebacks from Jordan Kyrou and Pavel Buchnevich. They needed better center depth, and players like Faksa and Texier could provide that. I don’t think Brayden Schenn is good enough to play top-six minutes, so some pressure should be taken off of him as well. A young winger like Holloway will be a terrific fit as well if he ends up in the middle six.
Head coach Drew Bannister will have his hands full trying to mix and match the forward group. However, the personnel will be a bit better this time around after he worked his way through last season as the interim head coach. I am bullish on the Blues’ 2024-25 forward group.
3. Blues Will Be Deep in Wild Card Race
There’s zero doubt that the Blues will be deep in the Wild Card race throughout the season. They are directly in the middle of the Central Division and if they improve by 8-10 points from last season, they could very easily snag a spot in the playoffs. I think they’re better than the Chicago Blackhawks, Utah Hockey Club, and Minnesota Wild, while they’re just outside of the division’s top three. If things go right for them and wrong for others, there are a few longshot scenarios where they end up in the top three of the Central, but I won’t hold my breath.
Related: St. Louis Blues Get Creative With ‘Contract Tracker’ Feature
If anything, this will be a fun season to watch. The roster is more talented and they have a lot of new names to keep an eye on throughout the season.
