Blues hockey has been over for a couple months and I still can’t get over Brayden Schenn’s season. Even if he didn’t lead the team in points (which he did), at least the Blues weren’t paying Jori Lehtera $4.7 million to be outscored by Scottie Upshall and Kyle Brodziak.
Predicting how the St. Louis Blues will play is undoubtedly one of the hardest tasks. Throughout the season we've seen slumps and streaks followed by streaks then slumps. The Blues are 9-1-1 this month with a current winning streak of six games. With six games remaining in the season, here are Peter Hempstead's (@petehempstead) game-by-game predictions followed by a few general predictions.
Hockey is back. Early injuries began to scrape optimism from fans, but the Blues are off to a great start. Here are Blues Buzz’s season predictions
Five Blues players are injured and the season hasn’t even started yet. Robby Fabbri’s big return will need to wait another season. Alexander Steen, Patrik Berglund, Zach Sanford, and Jay Bouwmeester are the other impaired. Holes need to be filled, so here are our projected lineups.
There has been quite a bit of chatter about rule changes for the upcoming 2017-2018 NHL season, especially with the first batch of pre-season games in the rearview mirror. More specifically, chatter about a new rule involving faceoffs, and stricter enforcement of slashing penalties that will leave many seasoned hockey fans perplexed at the number of whistles being blown this season. Let’s take a second to break down what has changed, what we can expect that to mean for the Blues, and what is going on in the minds of Stephen Walkom (VP and Director of Officiating for the NHL) and his boss, Colin Campbell (Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations for the NHL).
In classic Blues fashion, two players have been injured before the season starts. With a deep selection of substitutes, here are my guesses on who'll fill Zach Sanford and Jay Bouwmeesters' spots.
Brayden Schenn could become the second-line centerman the Blues have been desperately searching for. And if not, at least they aren't paying Lehtera $4.7 million to be outscored by Scottie Upshall and Kyle Brodziak. Schenn brings versatility to the Blues with his ability to play left wing and center.
Robby Fabbri’s return continues to excite St. Louis as we inch closer to opening night. The young forward suffered a season-ending injury after an impressive rookie season, but he's ready to slide back into the Blues’ lineup.
During "Free Agent Frenzy", the St. Louis Blues signed enforcer Chris Thorburn to a two-year, $900k AAV contract. Here are some highlights from his 12 years in the National Hockey League.
Blues fans were tired of Jori Lehtera's high-cost pay for subpar play, but the loss of a fan favorite fourth-liner was hard to swallow. Doug Armstrong and the St. Louis Blues weren't messing around at the 2017 NHL Draft this past weekend.
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