Montreal Writers Weigh In: Mulling the Mailloux Move

[The Average Gatsby]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

They played the Bruins in the Final

Duh. However, in the WCF, the Blues literally broke their defense (a couple didn’t even play in G6) and broke their team.

They broke their forwards too. Once Pavs was done, their heart was gone

The Sharks got beat to a pulp in the earlier rounds, the Blues swooped in finished them off. Without the hand-pass it's a shorter series.

I don’t see it that way. Karlsson got pounded and Pavelski got concussed. Pavelski was their leader and he nice he went down it was over. If fully healthy, I believe the Sharks could have won

No, they never had a realistic chance. The Blues were the better team, we just didn't know it yet. Ghosts of 2016.

It’s easy to say. Take out pietrangelo and Schwartz … make them healthy … then what

I believe Martin Jones was their goalie for that series. That’s enough to tank a team right there. Who was or wasn’t healthy doesn’t make much difference.

[Bubble4427]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

They played the Bruins in the Final

Duh. However, in the WCF, the Blues literally broke their defense (a couple didn’t even play in G6) and broke their team.

They broke their forwards too. Once Pavs was done, their heart was gone

The Sharks got beat to a pulp in the earlier rounds, the Blues swooped in finished them off. Without the hand-pass it's a shorter series.

I don’t see it that way. Karlsson got pounded and Pavelski got concussed. Pavelski was their leader and he nice he went down it was over. If fully healthy, I believe the Sharks could have won

No, they never had a realistic chance. The Blues were the better team, we just didn't know it yet. Ghosts of 2016.

It’s easy to say. Take out pietrangelo and Schwartz … make them healthy … then what

I believe Martin Jones was their goalie for that series. That’s enough to tank a team right there. Who was or wasn’t healthy doesn’t make much difference.

Martin “high glove = GOAL” Jones

[theograce]

Who was or wasn’t healthy doesn’t make much difference.

Of course it does.

Florida had Bobrovsky when they lost in epic record setting fashion.

[somni]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

Every report I read on Mailloux says he plays with an edge.

What makes you thinks he's "Tanya Tucker"?

[zamadoo]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

Every report I read on Mailloux says he plays with an edge.

What makes you thinks he's "Tanya Tucker"?

In the quotes from the Strickland interview I shared in another thread, you can see that he said he likes some snarl in his game, tries to have 3 fights per season, learned from Rob Ramage that you need to be involved physically early to get yourself "in the game," and that his slap shot is over 100mph.

[skilles]

They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker.

LOL ok that one got me, I laughed out loud.

[dhsux]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

They played the Bruins in the Final

Duh. However, in the WCF, the Blues literally broke their defense (a couple didn’t even play in G6) and broke their team.

They broke their forwards too. Once Pavs was done, their heart was gone

The Sharks got beat to a pulp in the earlier rounds, the Blues swooped in finished them off. Without the hand-pass it's a shorter series.

I don’t see it that way. Karlsson got pounded and Pavelski got concussed. Pavelski was their leader and he nice he went down it was over. If fully healthy, I believe the Sharks could have won

No, they never had a realistic chance. The Blues were the better team, we just didn't know it yet. Ghosts of 2016.

It’s easy to say. Take out pietrangelo and Schwartz … make them healthy … then what

I believe Martin Jones was their goalie for that series. That’s enough to tank a team right there. Who was or wasn’t healthy doesn’t make much difference.

Pretty much end of discussion.

[rezero]

No doubt in my mind the Blues are gonna win this trade.

I hope you're right. Even more than the loss of skill with Bolduc is the loss of grit/ sandpaper / edge on a team who needs it.

And although he had a quiet playoff with additional experience he's the exact type of player you want come the post-season.

That said, it's good to see the team returning to their big defensemen era. And even if Mailloux takes time to grow into his defensive game, the team can get him up to speed over time along the lines of what Niko Mikkola was here defensively and where he is now. If Mailloux does I would consider us the winners too, but losing Bolduc stings on multiple levels.

By the time Mailloux is really coming into his own, the Blues will have already replaced Bolduc from within.

In a sense, they've already replaced Bolduc with Snuggerud who's only played a small number of games with the Blues and that was with Holloway out. I am a big fan of Bolduc, but Dvorsky, Stenberg, Stancl and others will lessen the blow of losing him. There are only so many forward spots on the team.

I havent seen enough of Snuggerud or Dvorsky to say either will grow into what Bolduc was becoming. The thing neither of these players have shown yet even before joining Blues is the grit and toughness that Bolduc brought. People say we will replace Bolduc from within, but we have nobody on our current 3rd line who is close. Seems people have given up on 2025-26 in hope that down the road we may be better if Mailloux can figure out how to stop the errors and the young players develop down the road. I thought the toughness Neighbors and Bolduc were showing fed off each other.

[theograce]

No doubt in my mind the Blues are gonna win this trade.

I hope you're right. Even more than the loss of skill with Bolduc is the loss of grit/ sandpaper / edge on a team who needs it.

And although he had a quiet playoff with additional experience he's the exact type of player you want come the post-season.

That said, it's good to see the team returning to their big defensemen era. And even if Mailloux takes time to grow into his defensive game, the team can get him up to speed over time along the lines of what Niko Mikkola was here defensively and where he is now. If Mailloux does I would consider us the winners too, but losing Bolduc stings on multiple levels.

By the time Mailloux is really coming into his own, the Blues will have already replaced Bolduc from within.

In a sense, they've already replaced Bolduc with Snuggerud who's only played a small number of games with the Blues and that was with Holloway out. I am a big fan of Bolduc, but Dvorsky, Stenberg, Stancl and others will lessen the blow of losing him. There are only so many forward spots on the team.

I havent seen enough of Snuggerud or Dvorsky to say either will grow into what Bolduc was becoming. The thing neither of these players have shown yet even before joining Blues is the grit and toughness that Bolduc brought. People say we will replace Bolduc from within, but we have nobody on our current 3rd line who is close. Seems people have given up on 2025-26 in hope that down the road we may be better if Mailloux can figure out how to stop the errors and the young players develop down the road. I thought the toughness Neighbors and Bolduc were showing fed off each other.

Well we didn’t have to make that trade, but i’m sure the Habs wanted him for obvious reasons. He gonna be a fan favorite speaking in their native tongue, scoring goals … and some balls/grit. Makes total sense they wanted him

[TAFKAP]

The LAST thing the Blues needed was ANOTHER defenseman who is a liability in his own zone. They needed another Tyler Tucker. Instead, they got another Tanya Tucker. Apparently, they’re looking to add another in Bynum. Army apparently slept through the Final where Florida brutalized the Oilers’ defense or even the 2019 Final where the Blues BROKE the Sharks.

They played the Bruins in the Final

Duh. However, in the WCF, the Blues literally broke their defense (a couple didn’t even play in G6) and broke their team.

They broke their forwards too. Once Pavs was done, their heart was gone

The Sharks got beat to a pulp in the earlier rounds, the Blues swooped in finished them off. Without the hand-pass it's a shorter series.

I don’t see it that way. Karlsson got pounded and Pavelski got concussed. Pavelski was their leader and he nice he went down it was over. If fully healthy, I believe the Sharks could have won

No, they never had a realistic chance. The Blues were the better team, we just didn't know it yet. Ghosts of 2016.

It’s easy to say. Take out pietrangelo and Schwartz … make them healthy … then what

I believe Martin Jones was their goalie for that series. That’s enough to tank a team right there. Who was or wasn’t healthy doesn’t make much difference.

Yet he was also the goalie for the Sharks in 2016 that eliminated the Blues. Took his team to Game 6 of the SCF. I'm not a Martin Jones fan, but I think getting them to the WCF twice in 4 years, winning one, makes your comment a little fake.

[STL fan in MN]

No doubt in my mind the Blues are gonna win this trade.

I hope you're right. Even more than the loss of skill with Bolduc is the loss of grit/ sandpaper / edge on a team who needs it.

And although he had a quiet playoff with additional experience he's the exact type of player you want come the post-season.

That said, it's good to see the team returning to their big defensemen era. And even if Mailloux takes time to grow into his defensive game, the team can get him up to speed over time along the lines of what Niko Mikkola was here defensively and where he is now. If Mailloux does I would consider us the winners too, but losing Bolduc stings on multiple levels.

By the time Mailloux is really coming into his own, the Blues will have already replaced Bolduc from within.

In a sense, they've already replaced Bolduc with Snuggerud who's only played a small number of games with the Blues and that was with Holloway out. I am a big fan of Bolduc, but Dvorsky, Stenberg, Stancl and others will lessen the blow of losing him. There are only so many forward spots on the team.

I havent seen enough of Snuggerud or Dvorsky to say either will grow into what Bolduc was becoming. The thing neither of these players have shown yet even before joining Blues is the grit and toughness that Bolduc brought. People say we will replace Bolduc from within, but we have nobody on our current 3rd line who is close. Seems people have given up on 2025-26 in hope that down the road we may be better if Mailloux can figure out how to stop the errors and the young players develop down the road. I thought the toughness Neighbors and Bolduc were showing fed off each other.

It would be an extreme disappointment if either Dvorsky or Snuggerud didn’t end up better than Bolduc.

And I wouldn’t really call Bolduc gritty and tough at all. He’s feisty. He’ll push back. Which honestly, was a pleasant surprise as he was pretty darn soft in Jrs. My guess is he realized he needed to up his compete level as a pro and to his credit, he did. But nobody’s circling Bolduc’s name as one to look out for blowing up their players when teams play the Blues (now Canadiens). Dvorsky is quite physical, especially along the boards. Snuggerud isn’t overly physical but uses his size and body well along the boards. I’d expect both to be at least as feisty and as physical as Bolduc and tbh, probably more so.

But agree they have no obvious internal replacement for Bolduc (not the same caliber player anyway), unless you want to count Snuggerud. But I already had Snuggy penciled into the lineup so now Bolduc’s spot will mostly likely be filled by one of Joseph, Texier, Bjugstad, or Sunny.

[dhsux]

No doubt in my mind the Blues are gonna win this trade.

I hope you're right. Even more than the loss of skill with Bolduc is the loss of grit/ sandpaper / edge on a team who needs it.

And although he had a quiet playoff with additional experience he's the exact type of player you want come the post-season.

That said, it's good to see the team returning to their big defensemen era. And even if Mailloux takes time to grow into his defensive game, the team can get him up to speed over time along the lines of what Niko Mikkola was here defensively and where he is now. If Mailloux does I would consider us the winners too, but losing Bolduc stings on multiple levels.

By the time Mailloux is really coming into his own, the Blues will have already replaced Bolduc from within.

In a sense, they've already replaced Bolduc with Snuggerud who's only played a small number of games with the Blues and that was with Holloway out. I am a big fan of Bolduc, but Dvorsky, Stenberg, Stancl and others will lessen the blow of losing him. There are only so many forward spots on the team.

I havent seen enough of Snuggerud or Dvorsky to say either will grow into what Bolduc was becoming. The thing neither of these players have shown yet even before joining Blues is the grit and toughness that Bolduc brought. People say we will replace Bolduc from within, but we have nobody on our current 3rd line who is close. Seems people have given up on 2025-26 in hope that down the road we may be better if Mailloux can figure out how to stop the errors and the young players develop down the road. I thought the toughness Neighbors and Bolduc were showing fed off each other.

It would be an extreme disappointment if either Dvorsky or Snuggerud didn’t end up better than Bolduc.

And I wouldn’t really call Bolduc gritty and tough at all. He’s feisty. He’ll push back. Which honestly, was a pleasant surprise as he was pretty darn soft in Jrs. My guess is he realized he needed to up his compete level as a pro and to his credit, he did. But nobody’s circling Bolduc’s name as one to look out for blowing up their players when teams play the Blues (now Canadiens). Dvorsky is quite physical, especially along the boards. Snuggerud isn’t overly physical but uses his size and body well along the boards. I’d expect both to be at least as feisty and as physical as Bolduc and tbh, probably more so.

But agree they have no obvious internal replacement for Bolduc (not the same caliber player anyway), unless you want to count Snuggerud. But I already had Snuggy penciled into the lineup so now Bolduc’s spot will mostly likely be filled by one of Joseph, Texier, Bjugstad, or Sunny.

"extreme dissappointment"

Wow.

Thank you for putting this trade into some context that is definitely missing on this board.

For me too.

[STL fan in MN]

No doubt in my mind the Blues are gonna win this trade.

I hope you're right. Even more than the loss of skill with Bolduc is the loss of grit/ sandpaper / edge on a team who needs it.

And although he had a quiet playoff with additional experience he's the exact type of player you want come the post-season.

That said, it's good to see the team returning to their big defensemen era. And even if Mailloux takes time to grow into his defensive game, the team can get him up to speed over time along the lines of what Niko Mikkola was here defensively and where he is now. If Mailloux does I would consider us the winners too, but losing Bolduc stings on multiple levels.

By the time Mailloux is really coming into his own, the Blues will have already replaced Bolduc from within.

In a sense, they've already replaced Bolduc with Snuggerud who's only played a small number of games with the Blues and that was with Holloway out. I am a big fan of Bolduc, but Dvorsky, Stenberg, Stancl and others will lessen the blow of losing him. There are only so many forward spots on the team.

I havent seen enough of Snuggerud or Dvorsky to say either will grow into what Bolduc was becoming. The thing neither of these players have shown yet even before joining Blues is the grit and toughness that Bolduc brought. People say we will replace Bolduc from within, but we have nobody on our current 3rd line who is close. Seems people have given up on 2025-26 in hope that down the road we may be better if Mailloux can figure out how to stop the errors and the young players develop down the road. I thought the toughness Neighbors and Bolduc were showing fed off each other.

It would be an extreme disappointment if either Dvorsky or Snuggerud didn’t end up better than Bolduc.

And I wouldn’t really call Bolduc gritty and tough at all. He’s feisty. He’ll push back. Which honestly, was a pleasant surprise as he was pretty darn soft in Jrs. My guess is he realized he needed to up his compete level as a pro and to his credit, he did. But nobody’s circling Bolduc’s name as one to look out for blowing up their players when teams play the Blues (now Canadiens). Dvorsky is quite physical, especially along the boards. Snuggerud isn’t overly physical but uses his size and body well along the boards. I’d expect both to be at least as feisty and as physical as Bolduc and tbh, probably more so.

But agree they have no obvious internal replacement for Bolduc (not the same caliber player anyway), unless you want to count Snuggerud. But I already had Snuggy penciled into the lineup so now Bolduc’s spot will mostly likely be filled by one of Joseph, Texier, Bjugstad, or Sunny.

"extreme dissappointment"

Wow.

Thank you for putting this trade into some context that is definitely missing on this board.

For me too.

Don’t get me wrong, I really liked Bolduc. But yes, both Dvorsky and Snuggerud project to be better.

[SameOldBlues]

It’s incredibly astounding how much revisionist history has been taking place ever since the LM trade. Almost every single person who was down on the trade in the aftermath of it, rarely EVER gloated how awesome they thought Bolduc was before the trade. Take a simple peek into the posting history’s of the people most vocal about Bolduc being traded if ya think Im exaggerating. Now all of the sudden Bolduc’s being painted as the Superstar that got away, all 19 goals and his unbelievable grit and nastyness according to them. I just dont get it.

No doubt about it, Bolduc’s a good player and has a bright future, but he’s not even close to being irreplaceable. Ill bet he turns out to be an annual 25 goalscorer, plays ok defense, and is a tweener between the 2nd and 3rd line thruout his career, but he aint Superman, and if LM lives up to his potential, this trade goes from being equal as of now, to very lopsided in the Blues favor in time.

[theograce]

It’s incredibly astounding how much revisionist history has been taking place ever since the LM trade. Almost every single person who was down on the trade in the aftermath of it, rarely EVER gloated how awesome they thought Bolduc was before the trade. Take a simple peek into the posting history’s of the people most vocal about Bolduc being traded if ya think Im exaggerating. Now all of the sudden Bolduc’s being painted as the Superstar that got away, all 19 goals and his unbelievable grit and nastyness according to them. I just dont get it.

No doubt about it, Bolduc’s a good player and has a bright future, but he’s not even close to being irreplaceable. Ill bet he turns out to be an annual 25 goalscorer, plays ok defense, and is a tweener between the 2nd and 3rd line thruout his career, but he aint Superman, and if LM lives up to his potential, this trade goes from being equal as of now, to very lopsided in the Blues favor in time.

I haven’t read anyone saying Bolduc is going to be a superstar.

But I have read people comparing Mally to 10 million dollar dmen

[a smell of green grass]

If LM becomes a TOP4 defenseman, STL WON the trade. If LM does not become a TOP4 defenseman, STL definitely LOST the trade. Bolduc was very valuable prospect trade bait, and if LM does not result in something special, Armstrong traded Bolduc for the wrong guy.

Second, at the outset, the trade was a mismatch.

Yes, both teams traded their "surplus", but look closer.

Montreal traded away the weakest of their prospect RHD, and the guy with personal baggage.

St Louis traded away their strongest of their prospect Wingers, and the guy with known ultra-toughness.

As it stands now, Montreal won the trade. However, if LM becomes TOP4, then STL won the trade.