St. Louis Blues 2015-16 Season Primer

Looking at the St. Louis Blues heading into this season – outlook, potential lines, roster, top prospects, draft history, stats and season schedule.

2014-15 record: 51-24-7, 109 points (1^st in the Central Division, 2^nd in the Western Conference, 4^th in the league)
2014-15 Outcome: Lost in the first round to Minnesota.

Cap Hit: $70,213,332
Player Salaries: $70,770,000 (22)
Cap Space: $1,186,668
Forwards: $43,386,000 (13)
Defensemen: $22,025,000 (7)
Goalies: $4,850,000 (2)

In: Justin Hodgman, C/RW (FA – Ari), Andre Benoit, D (FA – Buf), Pheonix Copley, G (T – Wsh), Troy Brouwer, RW (T – Wsh), Peter Harrold, D/W (FA – NJ), Kyle Brodziak, C/RW (FA – Min), Jordan Caron, LW/RW (FA – Col), Danny Kristo, RW (FA – NYR), Konrad Abeltshauser, D (T – SJ)

Out: Chris Porter, LW (FA – Phi), T.J. Oshie, RW (T – Wsh), John Mccarthy, LW/C (FA – SJ), Brent Regner, D (FA – FLA), Zbynek Michalek, D (FA – Ari), Barret Jackman, D (FA – Nas), Colin Fraser, C/LW (FA-Europe), Benn Ferriero, RW (FA-Europe)

Source: Sports Forecaster

Outlook for the Season:

Following a dominant regular season performance, the Blues once again were considered a strong contender for the Cup … and once again disappointed their fans with a shocking first round exit. While many expected Ken Hitchcock to be handed his walking papers, he was given a one year extension and the chance to prove the doubters wrong. St Louis also began the process of shaking up their core, with a trade that sent TJ Oshie to the Capitals in exchange for former cup-winner Troy Brouwer.

Brouwer gives the Blues a little extra cap space, but it’s his experience they’re mostly counting on to make an impact. With 21 goals last season, his offensive production will likely be similar to Oshie’s, though the latter contributed far more assists to his team. With the Capitals, Brouwer bounced around a few lines, frequently playing on with Johansson and Kuznetsov.

Will the extra minutes push him into the 50+ points category? Probably not. In fact, the 43 points Brouwer put up last season matches his career high – that he only achieved in 13/14. He’s only reached that mark once he began spending over three minutes per game on the Capitals’ deadly power play. Oshie averaged just 2.38 minutes/game on the power play last season, so it’s likely Brouwer will be getting less time with the man-advantage in St. Louis. Does this make the trade a complete wash? No, not exactly. The Blues needed to change things up to try and take a step forward, so grabbing an older, more experienced player is a predictable, if risky move.

On the other hand, extending the electric Vladimir Tarasenko for seven years has to make every Blues fan happy, even at the hefty $7.5mil/yr price tag. Tarasenko was easily the most effective forward for them in the playoffs, posting not only his first career playoff hat trick, but six goals and 7 points in the series, as well leading the team in points (73), goals (37), and all situation Points/60 (3.21) during the regular season. Expect more of the same from the talented winger this year, as he’s an elite forward who will keep defenses on their toes.

The other impactful extension this offseason was that of Jake Allen, backup goalie. There was a lot of controversy surrounding Hitchcock’s goalie management in the playoffs, and rumors even swirled about bad blood between the older Elliot and upstart Allen. The players have dismissed these rumors outright, and with both goaltenders posting solid seasons last year (Save percentage of 0.917 for Elliot, and 0.913 for Allen), there should be no reason for concern in net for this upcoming campaign. In particular, Allen will be looking for a breakout year, as he’s fighting to claim a starting spot. While he has no contract negotiations in the near future (he won’t be RFA until 2017), consistency at the NHL level is something that can only be proven over time. If Allen wants to be the number one guy in St Louis for years to come, he needs to bring his A-Game now.

While the Blues have added depth players, such as Kyle Brodziak, they also let familiar face Barret Jackman walk as a UFA. All in all, they kept their character as a big, puck possessing team this offseason. With the brilliance of Tarasenko, the reliability of their depth forwards like Lehtera and Schwartz, the offensively capable defenders like Shattenkirk and Pietrangelo, and the steady net minding of Elliot and Allen, the Blues will again be a tough team to beat in the Central, and are well positioned to take another run at the Cup.

Trending Up:

Paul Stastny:  The Blues’ key offseason signing in the summer of ’14, Stastny was supposed to be the capstone that finished off a championship product. Instead, he suffered an injury early in the season, and then found himself centering a third line in a very different system. Hitchcock has already mentioned the idea of moving Backes to wing and pushing Stastny into the Top 6. While he managed to put up 46 points last year despite everything, Stastny has the second highest cap hit on the team, and the Blues are expecting more.

Jaden Schwartz:  Another young gun with a bright future, Schwartz came in third in points (62) on a very deep offense last year. It certainly helped that he most frequently played on a line with Lehtera and Tarasenko, but his 28 goals are no fluke; he put up 25 the year before while being shuffled all over the place. A key piece to the Blues’ offensive depth, Schwartz can fill holes on any line and will be counted on for another strong performance.

Trending Down:

David Backes:  Now 31, the St Louis Blues’ Captain seems to be slowing down in his “old age.” While his point production is still running at Top 6 levels, he saw his possession slip quite a bit last year, with no real change in usage. With only one year left on his contract, the Blues are going to take a long hard look at Backes, and where he fits on an increasingly young roster, this season.

Trade Deadline Outlook:

Listen, the Blues are stacked. GM Doug Armstrong doesn’t have much cap space, but he does have plenty of talent to trade should he want to bring in a rental. Honestly, the shakiest position the Blues have is that of their head coach. Hitchcock’s playoff decision-making was questionable, so it’s going to be interesting to see how long of a leash he’ll have next season, especially with some quality coaches still unemployed. If the Blues don’t have a similarly fast start to this year, he could find himself in hot water.

Projected 2015-16 Range: Playoff Chances: Lock

Written by Carolyn Wilke, who can be found on twitter@Classlicity

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule

Potential line combinations, defensive pairings, and goalies.

Alexander Steen – Paul Stastny – Vladimir Tarasenko
Jaden Schwartz – Jori Lehtera – David Backes
Dmitrij Jaskin – Patrik Berglund – Troy Brouwer
Steve Ott – Kyle Brodziak – Ryan Reaves
Jordan Caron – Magnus Paajarvi

Carl Gunnarsson – Alex Pietrangelo
Jay Bouwmeester – Kevin Shattenkirk
Petteri Lindbohm – Robert Bortuzzo
Chris Butler

Brian Elliott
Jake Allen

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule

Some top St. Louis Blues prospect lists heading into the season.

* Different sites have different guidelines for who is a ‘prospect.’

1. Robby Fabbri: Right Wing – 5’10” / 170 lbs – The Blues can’t wait for Fabbri to arrive as he is a dynamic scorer who oozes offensive skill and is a cluth scorer. Injuries limited his games in junior last year, but despite playing only 30 games he still managed to score 25 goals and 51 points. He was dominant in junior and at the WJC where he scored six points in five games before a high ankle sprain knocked him out. He finished the year strong after a call up to Chicago, where he had his first taste of the pros playing three games in the AHL and had a goal and four points. Fabbri will be a real threat to make the Blues this year at 19 years old.

2. Ivan Barbashev: Centre – 6’0” / 180 lbs – Despite scoring 68 points in 48 games in the QMJHL in his draft year, Barbashev went undrafted in the first round to the surprise of many and fell into the Blues laps with the 33^rdpick. Barbashev had a monster year last year with Moncton scoring 45 goals and 95 points in 57 games and was dominant at the WJC with Russia scoring three goals and six points in seven games winning the Silver Medal.  Because he has a late birthday, he can forgo a fourth year in junior and play in the AHL this year, which will allow the Blues to bring him up a few times during the season if need  be.

3. Jordan Schmaltz: Defence – 6’2” / 190 lbs – The offensive defenceman put up impressive numbers in the USHL and saw his point totals improve each of his three years with North Dakota. Schmaltz has signed his ELC and will start his pro career with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL. He needs a year or two developing his game and adjusting to the pros, but has top four potential.

4. Ty Rattie: Right Wing – 6’0´/ 178 lbs – In his second pro season, Rattie raised his points per game from .67 to .71 scoring 42 points in 59 games. He had an 11 game look at the NHL level, as well in a limited role playing an average of 9:06 minutes a night. Previously projected as a top six winger, he now may slot in on the third line and will see more NHL action this year.

5. Petteri Lindbohm: Defence – 6’3” / 198 lbs – The 22 year old played his first season in North America and split time between the AHL and the NHL. In 23 NHL games, he played very well and scored three points, but defence is his forte. Lindbohm played so well for the Blues they were able to let Barret Jackman leave via free agency, opening up a roster spot for Lindbohm. He should start the year as the sixth defenceman.

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule

A look at the St. Louis Blues drafting from 2010 to 2015.

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule

St. Louis Blues 2014-15 player stats.

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule

A look at the St. Louis Blues 2015-16 schedule.

Blues: Outlook | Lines and Roster | Top Prospects | Draft History | Stats | Schedule