Biggest Concerns to Start the Season

[SRV1990]

My biggest concern is the this team hinges on a couple of players being the scoring cogs and if they go down we will struggle to score. If this team loses, Thomas, Kyrou, or Holloway for an extended period we get weak offensively very fast. Snuggerud will be good in a few years and Neighbors looks like more of a grinder type scorer. Schenn and Buch can’t carry a team offensively. We have 3 star play makers.

Trading Bolduc may work out, but it could turn out to be disastrous if any of those three get injured. We are treading on thin ice while some of the other players like Snuggerud and Dvorsky develop.

Good points. I suspect that there is a good chance that the team will be a little weaker on defense this year, and that will mean that the goals-scored pace will need to uptick on top of it.

Injuries to star players can derail any team. If anything, there is more depth this season in the forward ranks, certainly at center, and with Mailloux added on defense, presuming they bring Ryan Suter back. If Suter does not come back the D depth is Kessel and Schueneman, presumably.

More forward prospects are closer to the NHL than they were last season, which includes Snuggerud, Dvorsky, Kaskimaki, Peterson. Perhaps Dean later.

Imagine if the Oilers lost Draisaitl and his 52 goals. Yes, they have McDavid and RNH, and you can even throw in Zach Hyman, but not much else when it comes to goal scorers. Losing Drai, who accounted for 20% of their goals, would be disastrous to the team who's made the last two Stanley Cup finals.

[DawgDad]

My biggest concern is the this team hinges on a couple of players being the scoring cogs and if they go down we will struggle to score. If this team loses, Thomas, Kyrou, or Holloway for an extended period we get weak offensively very fast. Snuggerud will be good in a few years and Neighbors looks like more of a grinder type scorer. Schenn and Buch can’t carry a team offensively. We have 3 star play makers.

Trading Bolduc may work out, but it could turn out to be disastrous if any of those three get injured. We are treading on thin ice while some of the other players like Snuggerud and Dvorsky develop.

Good points. I suspect that there is a good chance that the team will be a little weaker on defense this year, and that will mean that the goals-scored pace will need to uptick on top of it.

Injuries to star players can derail any team. If anything, there is more depth this season in the forward ranks, certainly at center, and with Mailloux added on defense, presuming they bring Ryan Suter back. If Suter does not come back the D depth is Kessel and Schueneman, presumably.

More forward prospects are closer to the NHL than they were last season, which includes Snuggerud, Dvorsky, Kaskimaki, Peterson. Perhaps Dean later.

Imagine if the Oilers lost Draisaitl and his 52 goals. Yes, they have McDavid and RNH, and you can even throw in Zach Hyman, but not much else when it comes to goal scorers. Losing Drai, who accounted for 20% of their goals, would be disastrous to the team who's made the last two Stanley Cup finals.

Losing Hyman may have cost them a Cup.

[SRV1990]

My biggest concern is the this team hinges on a couple of players being the scoring cogs and if they go down we will struggle to score. If this team loses, Thomas, Kyrou, or Holloway for an extended period we get weak offensively very fast. Snuggerud will be good in a few years and Neighbors looks like more of a grinder type scorer. Schenn and Buch can’t carry a team offensively. We have 3 star play makers.

Trading Bolduc may work out, but it could turn out to be disastrous if any of those three get injured. We are treading on thin ice while some of the other players like Snuggerud and Dvorsky develop.

Good points. I suspect that there is a good chance that the team will be a little weaker on defense this year, and that will mean that the goals-scored pace will need to uptick on top of it.

Injuries to star players can derail any team. If anything, there is more depth this season in the forward ranks, certainly at center, and with Mailloux added on defense, presuming they bring Ryan Suter back. If Suter does not come back the D depth is Kessel and Schueneman, presumably.

More forward prospects are closer to the NHL than they were last season, which includes Snuggerud, Dvorsky, Kaskimaki, Peterson. Perhaps Dean later.

Imagine if the Oilers lost Draisaitl and his 52 goals. Yes, they have McDavid and RNH, and you can even throw in Zach Hyman, but not much else when it comes to goal scorers. Losing Drai, who accounted for 20% of their goals, would be disastrous to the team who's made the last two Stanley Cup finals.

Losing Hyman may have cost them a Cup.

No argument from me on that one. Which goes to show, only a very few teams can survive losing one of their top scorers, or more to your point, a 20-goal scorer.

[Harry S Deals]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

[somni]

Not concerned with scoring. Injuries happen, but there are a couple kids in Springfield biting at the bit.

I would say right now the biggest concern is lack of depth on defense. A Tucker/Mailloux pairing, while could be good at times, is lots to expect for a whole season. Quite honestly, they need someone like Ryan Suter again. A low cost but reliable vet.

I am not sure we have anyone in Springfield who can fill the shoes of Thomas, Kyrou, or Holloway. It feels like we have more depth on defense which was evident when Parayko went down and the team still excelled.

Well yeah, those are big names to fill. Same could be for any team that loses one of their top three scorers. The Blues were able to sustain defense because of Ryan Suter, which is why I want someone like that again for this year. Now they'll have to turn to Kessel.

The Blues adapted when Holloway went down. They experienced Thomas' injury...although the team still had Bannister. They have players that could come in (Dvorsky, Dean, Kaskimaki) and fill in to sustain the lineup. Of course, those three can't replace the production, but who would on any team? Regardless, I think we'll see those 3 at some point in the season anyway.

[somni]

Not concerned with scoring. Injuries happen, but there are a couple kids in Springfield biting at the bit.

I would say right now the biggest concern is lack of depth on defense. A Tucker/Mailloux pairing, while could be good at times, is lots to expect for a whole season. Quite honestly, they need someone like Ryan Suter again. A low cost but reliable vet.

In your opinion, who is LW #1 and #2 in Springfield and would be called up first?
RW #1 and #2?

Dvorsky (right wing), Kaskimaki (left wing), Dean (either). I think these are the top three.

Others depending on need would be Dylan Peterson and/or Simon Robertsson.

The two that are wild cards are Stenberg and Stancl as they probably need more time in Springfield.

TBH, this in just on what I've seen limited and read. Some of this depends on training camp. I plan on buying AHLTV this year to watch the TBirds. There are lots of prospects I want to watch closer.

[a smell of green grass]

Not concerned with scoring. Injuries happen, but there are a couple kids in Springfield biting at the bit.

I would say right now the biggest concern is lack of depth on defense. A Tucker/Mailloux pairing, while could be good at times, is lots to expect for a whole season. Quite honestly, they need someone like Ryan Suter again. A low cost but reliable vet.

In your opinion, who is LW #1 and #2 in Springfield and would be called up first?
RW #1 and #2?

Dvorsky (right wing), Kaskimaki (left wing), Dean (either). I think these are the top three.

Others depending on need would be Dylan Peterson and/or Simon Robertsson.

The two that are wild cards are Stenberg and Stancl as they probably need more time in Springfield.

TBH, this in just on what I've seen limited and read. Some of this depends on training camp. I plan on buying AHLTV this year to watch the TBirds. There are lots of prospects I want to watch closer.

I heard someone else mention AHLTV as well. Seems like a good way to fill the hockey week. Do you know if AHLTV is a good way to watch the games? Can you watch games whenever you want? Is it low budget or pretty decent?

[callitwhatyouwant]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

How anyone can claim the Blues got worse this summer is beyond me. People are saying the Pius Suter signing is probably the most bang for the buck signing of the offseason (in terms of a player moving off their previous team). Some media heads didn't get it and thought he definitely left 1.5-2m a year on the table. But Suter apparently is betting on himself on being in a really good situation. The Blues basically said he is playing for an extension here with how they laid it out for him.

Bolduc hurts and he was one of my favorites. But in 2-3 years you now might have a defense that is Parayko, Mailloux, Jiricek down the right. And Broberg, Lindstein, Tucker down the left. I Personally hope we resign Fowler to a 2-3 year deal to make sure the young guys can handle it. But that defense has potential. Long, fast, and talented.

[a smell of green grass]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

How anyone can claim the Blues got worse this summer is beyond me. People are saying the Pius Suter signing is probably the most bang for the buck signing of the offseason (in terms of a player moving off their previous team). Some media heads didn't get it and thought he definitely left 1.5-2m a year on the table. But Suter apparently is betting on himself on being in a really good situation. The Blues basically said he is playing for an extension here with how they laid it out for him.

Bolduc hurts and he was one of my favorites. But in 2-3 years you now might have a defense that is Parayko, Mailloux, Jiricek down the right. And Broberg, Lindstein, Tucker down the left. I Personally hope we resign Fowler to a 2-3 year deal to make sure the young guys can handle it. But that defense has potential. Long, fast, and talented.

Regarding how anyone can claim how the Blues got worse....

In order to prove or disprove this, you have to look at how well the Blues did compared to the other teams. It's incomplete to consider only what the Blues did.

When you consider draft picks, the Blues prospect pool is ranked middle of the pack. This means that other teams will be bringing in better young rookie talent than the Blues for at least 3 more years. That said, no one knows for sure how the rookies will perform, but if you look at what we know now, this is very true.

When you consider free agents, the Blues did land some this offseason, but it is also true that other teams added better.

I'm not sure if they lost or gained ground. I will have to see how the team performs with the new crop of players, and what the other teams look like.

[somni]

Not concerned with scoring. Injuries happen, but there are a couple kids in Springfield biting at the bit.

I would say right now the biggest concern is lack of depth on defense. A Tucker/Mailloux pairing, while could be good at times, is lots to expect for a whole season. Quite honestly, they need someone like Ryan Suter again. A low cost but reliable vet.

In your opinion, who is LW #1 and #2 in Springfield and would be called up first?
RW #1 and #2?

Dvorsky (right wing), Kaskimaki (left wing), Dean (either). I think these are the top three.

Others depending on need would be Dylan Peterson and/or Simon Robertsson.

The two that are wild cards are Stenberg and Stancl as they probably need more time in Springfield.

TBH, this in just on what I've seen limited and read. Some of this depends on training camp. I plan on buying AHLTV this year to watch the TBirds. There are lots of prospects I want to watch closer.

I heard someone else mention AHLTV as well. Seems like a good way to fill the hockey week. Do you know if AHLTV is a good way to watch the games? Can you watch games whenever you want? Is it low budget or pretty decent?

I'm just starting to look into, but I'm fairly certain I will get it. Here's the link for info.
https://theahl.com/news/ahl-flosports-p ... -extension

[seattleblue]

I think the Blues definitely have a younger wave equal to Thomas Kyrou Holloway. Dvorsky has some things he is going to do better and worse than Thomas but he's going to be an impact center however long he marinates on the wing. Kyrou is just not a high bar to match given how long he was a net negative, as I am pretty sure Carbonneau, Snuggerud or Stenberg will put up one good year in their first seven so that it's a tie. All three of Snuggy Stenberg and Carbonneau play with a Holloway mentality and they're all reasonably fast and skilled with excellent shots and lots of energy to burn.

For forwards it's just about being patient not too much longer. But for defense they will either have to take some action (or Armstrong will have to have scored big with Mailloux).

[Harry S Deals]

I think the Blues definitely have a younger wave equal to Thomas Kyrou Holloway. Dvorsky has some things he is going to do better and worse than Thomas but he's going to be an impact center however long he marinates on the wing. Kyrou is just not a high bar to match given how long he was a net negative, as I am pretty sure Carbonneau, Snuggerud or Stenberg will put up one good year in their first seven so that it's a tie. All three of Snuggy Stenberg and Carbonneau play with a Holloway mentality and they're all reasonably fast and skilled with excellent shots and lots of energy to burn.

For forwards it's just about being patient not too much longer. But for defense they will either have to take some action (or Armstrong will have to have scored big with Mailloux).

I think there are definitely some keepers coming on defense, Broberg will ascend this season Tucker will improve and I have a higher opinion of Mailloux then most. Give it another year and see if Burns isnt pushing for a spot and we will know on Jiricek once he hits the AHL

[noted]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

Armstrong gave an interview where he mentioned Suter (shortly after he was signed) as the 2C between Holloway and Kyrou. Might not happen and was surprised to hear it, but he did say it.

[a smell of green grass]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

Armstrong gave an interview where he mentioned Suter (shortly after he was signed) as the 2C between Holloway and Kyrou. Might not happen and was surprised to hear it, but he did say it.

FYI. Somebody mentioned on BluesTalk that Vancouver fans are going to miss Suter. He is Mister Deflection in front of the net. I'm hoping to see a bunch of deflections of Mailloux bombs. I guess I hope that they put Suter on a line where he can deflect the the highest quantity of bombs. I'd love to see the opposing goalie shaking on his skates at the thought of it.

[Harry S Deals]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

Armstrong gave an interview where he mentioned Suter (shortly after he was signed) as the 2C between Holloway and Kyrou. Might not happen and was surprised to hear it, but he did say it.

That would surprise me somewhat to see Suter supplant Schenn. In his last (10) seasons Schenn has (8) 50+ point totals, Suter has never reached 50 pts. Suter for me is a bottom 6 center but who knows we will see. Kyrou and Holloway will inflate just about any competent centers point totals.

[LGB73]

Biggest concern is they got worse over the summer. Didn’t address the 2C and lost Bolduc for a project.

Schenn is already a 2C 50pt minimum center between Kyrou and Holloway, Blues added the 3C which they needed badly in Suter. Also with Bjugdstad they have additional depth and size down the middle so no worries there for me. If Dvorsky claims center ice time this year thats even better.
Bolduc is far from a sure thing, hes a 3rd liner on the Blues roster and they cashed him for a young RHD with size speed and skill, again make that trade all day long

Armstrong gave an interview where he mentioned Suter (shortly after he was signed) as the 2C between Holloway and Kyrou. Might not happen and was surprised to hear it, but he did say it.

That would surprise me somewhat to see Suter supplant Schenn. In his last (10) seasons Schenn has (8) 50+ point totals, Suter has never reached 50 pts. Suter for me is a bottom 6 center but who knows we will see. Kyrou and Holloway will inflate just about any competent centers point totals.

I don't believe Schenn was looking that good prior to being paired with Kyrou and Holloway so I agree they can help inflate any good C points. I think Father time is catching up to Schenn given his style of play over the years. If Suter is a good net front/deflection guy then yes I could see him being in pretty good shape with two guys who can shoot it. If he's got more speed than Schenn, then I'd probably prefer him at 2C.