Breaking down the St. Louis Blues ahead of NHL Free Agency.
Updated: Sunday, June 29
Pending free agents
Unrestricted: 14 | Restricted: 5 | See full list
[teamleaders league=”nhl” team=”stl” season=”2013″]
Blues overview
Heading into the playoffs, many expected the Blues to challenge for the Western Conference title. But Ken Hitchcock’s group — which was dealing with a handful of injuries to key players — fell short against the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round.
The Blues are as well-rounded a group as you’ll find is in the NHL – the have a strong balance of skill, grit and defensive awareness. Only the Boston Bruins and eventual Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings allowed fewer goals than the Blues last season and the Bruins were the only team with a better goal differential.
With a few tweaks from general manager Doug Armstrong, there’s no reason why the Blues shouldn’t be a strong Stanley Cup contender again in 2014-15.
Armstrong’s first key off-season decision was a risky one: not signing pending unrestricted free agent Ryan Miller. Losing the goaltender would be a big blow, considering how much St. Louis gave up to acquire him ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline — they dealt Jaroslav Halak, Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier, a first-round pick and conditional pick for Miller and Steve Ott. It will be interesting to see what the Blues do with their goaltending situation.
In May, Armstrong added veteran forward Joakim Lindstrom, who spent the last two years in the Swedish Elite League. He could end up being a solid fit for the team, as he’s a good friend of Blues leading scorer Alexander Steen.
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| Click player positions to see depth chart | ||
Areas to address
David Backes is an outstanding leader on and off the ice, plus Vladimir Sobotka is one of the most underrated players in the league down the middle, but the Blues lack a top-shelf offensive centre. They’re one of a handful of teams making a play for Jason Spezza, but if they miss out on the Ottawa Senators captain, they still need to think big. Should Paul Stastny not reach a deal with the Colorado Avalanche, the Blues should make a strong pitch to get him; he’d be a perfect fit and knows a handful of Blues players from the United States Olympic squad.
Another priority is to extend qualifying offers to Jaden Schwartz, Patrik Berglund and Sobotka. These are key players the Blues need. With veteran UFAs Steve Ott and Brenden Morrow both potentially departing, the Blues could have a couple spots to fill on the bottom two lines. Ty Rattie and/or Dmitrij Jaskin could be ready to finally make the jump permanently to the NHL, but the Blues would still look to add a grinder.
The defensive corps in St. Louis is as good as any in hockey right now, so that is of no concern to Armstrong this offseason. Again, what the Blues do with their goaltending situation is still in the air, but they appear content to let Brian Elliott and youngster Jake Allen battle it out for the starting spot.
Possible signing targets
Paul Stastny (C): The type of centre the Blues covet, but he won’t come cheap.
Mike Cammalleri (LW): Veteran sniper that can play on the wing or down the middle.
Colin Fraser (C): Would fit well in a fourth-line role.
Matt Moulson (LW): Adding more offence is never a bad thing, and Moulson can provide that.
