With four games remaining, the St. Louis Blues‘ playoff hopes have quickly died. The team must get through the rest of the season and work towards improving during the offseason.
This season has taught the Blues many things, and many changes were made, including bringing in interim head coach Drew Bannister to relieve Craig Berube of his duties. Here’s a look at what other changes the Blues will have to target this offseason.
Blues Must Draft Defensemen
Aside from Theo Lindstien, the organization’s top defensive prospect who signed an entry-level contract in March, no other players seem to be top two or four defensive prospects on the roster. One could argue that Matthew Kessel, Scott Perunovich, and Tyler Tucker are good young defensemen that the Blues can develop; however, if the Blues want to win another Stanley Cup in the next five to 10 years, they will need at least two top defensemen who will be with the team for years to come.
The Blues also have too many older players on the roster who have sent them in the wrong direction. Players like Justin Faulk, Torey Krug, and Colton Parayko are worth keeping, but Nick Leddy and Marco Scandella need to go. The Blues’ defense has an average age of 29, which should be addressed in the offseason.
There are many good options in the 2024 NHL Draft, such as Adam Jiricek, Aron Kiviharju, Cole Hutson, and many more, who rank within range of the Blues’ projected spot in the top 20 of the first round.
Find a Permanent and Experienced NHL Head Coach
Former New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff could be a potential candidate for hire. Still, with the time he lasted in the new era, I don’t think he will get a coaching job soon. The goal should be to get someone with recent Stanley Cup Final expertise, not a coach stuck in the 90s or early 2000s. However, given how things are going, I imagine Bannister could see a full-time head coach position coming his way.
John Tortorella is also a good option, considering he could be in the hot seat with the Philadelphia Flyers. In March, he was ejected from a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and with the questions surrounding his coaching philosophy and how he’s handled it in the open, I think his time will be up soon as the Flyers’ head coach.
However, Tortorella has shown a different side in his last few coaching stints with the New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks, and Columbus Blue Jackets. He can motivate future superstars like Robert Thomas, Jordan Kyrou, and Zach Bolduc. In the past, he’s called out his teams in the media, but now it’s different, and he’s starting to defend their potential to be good. He still needs to work on his lineup decisions, which can cause disagreements between players and coaches. This was shown when Sean Couturier, the captain of the Flyers, was stretched by Tortorella this season. You have to work hard to be part of a Tortorella team, and if he is relieved of his duties by the Flyers and the Blues hire him, everyone will have to be ready for it.
Lastly, Blues forward Kevin Hayes played for him with the Flyers last season, so there’s a lot of lot chemistry between the two that can be taken into consideration, especially after Tortorella defended him in the media when rumors surfaced that Hayes was a prime factor in Cutter Gauthier demanding a trade from Philadephia.
Avoid Unnecessary Free Agents and Contracts
The Blues did not make any significant acquisitions by the trade deadline, and much of the focus was on dealing a forward for another solid defenseman, but that didn’t happen because of their existing contracts. On defense, five players have a no-trade clause, and four of those five defensemen have two or more seasons until they can be traded. Leddy is worth getting rid of, as Krug, Faulk, and Parayko still have a few years to benefit the Blues. However once Krug, Faulk, and Parayko go past 35, I don’t see them staying long if the Blues head toward a rebuild.
General manager Doug Armstrong’s goal is to avoid the mistake he made with Leddy and Scandella. Scandella has a small list of teams he would agree to be traded to, and the Blues were able to move him this season but decided not to. On the other hand, Leddy’s list of teams kicks in June 2025. It would benefit the team if they traded him this summer, as he is 33 years old and has about three more seasons until he becomes an unrestricted free agent (UFA).
Related: Blues’ Matthew Kessel Scores First NHL Goal
There are many players on the market this offseason that the Blues should consider, like Brandon Montour, Noah Hanifin, and Brett Pesce, who could be crucial to their lineup. With this opportunity, they can sign players with more control over how much cap hit they are willing to take. Once again, the first task will be to dump salary through trade or let a UFA walk this offseason. The Blues can do that by letting go of Sammy Blais and Kasperi Kapanen, who will be UFAs this off-season. Saving cap space will allow the Blues to re-sign restricted free agent Perunovich in the long term. They will also be able to leave some space for Jimmy Snuggerud, who will most likely make his NHL debut next season after opting to stay with the University of Minnesota for his last season.
What Should the Blues Aim for Next Season?
Ultimately, the Blues’ expectation after this offseason is to fix the problems they’ve had this season, such as special teams, blocks, and overall defensive coverage. If they can patiently and correctly fill those holes, they could have a solid playoff team in the next two to three seasons. However, right now, I think they need to use their draft stock to their advantage and open up cap space for their prospects. They have a lot of good prospects coming up and a great foundation to build around in Thomas, Kyrou, and Pavel Buchnevich. Their goaltending is still excellent, and it only gets better with young goaltender Joel Hofer backing up Jordan Binnington. That said, if they can score more goals and avoid being outshot most of the time next season, they’ll be on the right track to success.