Holloway Joing the Blues Sunday

[Harry York 37]

Barring more injuries in the next few weeks, hard choices will be made.

I am entertaining the hope that the extra weeks off have allowed Holloway's oblique muscle to settle down and become completely happy with its reattachment to his hip bone.
If it has, and his nasty high ankle sprain is good to go..oooh la la!

I agree with you, but think the tough choices are more emotional than logical. It’s tough from a personality view to demote guys like Sunny and Walker, but from a hockey perspective it’s sort of a no-brainer.

I understand your point about the specific skills that Sunny and Walker lack: however, there is something to be said for being on the ice in a tough situation with cagey Vet like Sunny. He knows what will happen a full second before most anyone else on the ice does. He can bend the rules like Perron when necessary. That presence can be reassuring and calming when the [shirt] is hitting the fan.
Walker, on the other hand, is a shining example of keeping it simple and playing Ballz Out hockey every single shift.

I know you know this, but I wanted to point out that when a puck drops on an ice rink, there is more than pure and elegant skill involved.

[dhsux]

anyone else thinkin he's coming back a game too soon?

This roster has been on the ragged edge of decent all season. I believe every injured player is returning at the earliest possible moment. Thomas has played injured most, if not all this season.

Specifically, Holloway is a week to ten days ahead of the “normal” time frame, it appears.
He is the kind of player that paces in hospital rooms, gnashing his teeth in a subdued fury at his inability to create some major league fireworks on the ice.
During his recovery, Dvorsky and Stenberg have grown some solid roots and Holloway will provide a rock-solid example of a highly skilled veteran (24 year old veteran) with a compete level that rivals anyone in organized hockey.

The Blues trainers and players have done well bringing players back ahead of schedule. I very much doubt they are pushing any envelope to get Holloway back too soon for his own good, particularly this one......it needs 100% recovery imo.

[blues2112]

anyone else thinkin he's coming back a game too soon?

Either way no matter, it's not our call.

Hard to think management and medical staff would do that. Organ-eye-zation has a lot of money invested in these "assets."

What's more, no better team for a return than the Oilers.

[Old_Goat]

So

Kryou, Schenn, Snuggy
Neighbor, Devo, Holloway
Buch, Bjustad, Berggren
Stenberg Walker Sunny

Maybe?

Well if they insist on putting Holloway with Dvorsky and Schenn with Snuggerud, wouldn't it make more sense to be the following? And note, don't worry about the numerical order of the first three lines, I'm listing like this to make it easier to compare/visualize keeping Kyrou on right side and keeping Stenberg with Schenn and NOT on the 4th checking line.

Stenberg Schenn Snuggerud
Neighbours Dvorsky Holloway
Buchnevich Bjustad Kyrou
Berggren Walker/Sundqvist

Note, this lineup of Centermen makes reading the other posts this morning about the relative value of Robert Thomas unnecessary. We don't need to trade him, we need another just as good but ideally even better than Thomas. We have very little to offer to get an elite Centerman for trade at this time, and that trade could likely have to include Thomas, which puts you right back to depth/imbalance frustration as well as one injury away from futility.
Build cash and cap room to either make a smart, but expensive play for an RFA offer sheet or an UFA offer this summer. Or acquire draft assets, etc. to try to trade for likely an additional equivalent Centerman as Thomas.

I like these lines, with Berggren and Stenberg able to switch. I would sit Walker and play Fabbri.

Is this a must win game?

On the list of offer sheet eligible RFAs are Benson, Bedard, Carlsson, Fantilli, Svechkov, Mintyukov, D Jiricek, Nemec, Edvinsson, Grebenkin, Bolduc, Othmann, Clarke, Spacek, Zellweger, Winterton, Dach, Ostapchuk, and Iorio.

We're missing our 2nds for this and next year's draft, and our 3rd in 2028. That restricts our ability to offer sheet, but I wouldn't be against trying to target some of these players if they were for some reason available and not extending with their current teams.

Without re-signing anyone, the Blues will have $12M in cap space next season. Holy Jumpin' 27-28 will be $56M and 28-29 is projected to $68M in cap space!

We probably fill quite a bit of that $12M extending Holloway, who is about to go on a tear. Otherwise we are set through next season.

Looking at the list of UFAs... perhaps a few who still haven't re-signed I might have interest in.

Panarin, Trouba, Schmaltz, Schwartz, Bjorkstrand, Tuch, Perron...and maybe if guys like Malkin and Kopitar want to end their career here...

I think the biggest impact we could make is signing Schmaltz so that he is no longer against us

I wouldn't mind trading Faulk and replacing with Trouba, but that deal will be a blocker and likely to be bid very high. Doesn't look like much impact will be coming from UFAs this offseason. There are some guys, but the price will be high and they have to want to come here.

My assumption is that we will be trying to win next season while still developing, and then the following seasons we start to go all in. Once the curse of Krug has ended. I mean contract...

We'll see what Steen thinks.

Shoot, I forgot about the 2nd & 3rd round picks needed to complete an RFA offer sheet! Thank you for pointing that out.
Well if we can hit big on our 1st Rounder this year, then maybe we go big on the offer that would require our 1st Rounder next year? Admittedly I have not taken the time to research if that also requires additional picks beyond just a first?

[zamadoo]

Shoot, I forgot about the 2nd & 3rd round picks needed to complete an RFA offer sheet! Thank you for pointing that out.
Well if we can hit big on our 1st Rounder this year, then maybe we go big on the offer that would require our 1st Rounder next year? Admittedly I have not taken the time to research if that also requires additional picks beyond just a first?

$9,360,154 - $11,700,192
2x 1st Round Picks
1x 2nd Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$7,020,114 - $9,360,153
1x 1st Round Pick
1x 2nd Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$4,680,077 - $7,020,113
1x 1st Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$2,340,038 - $4,680,076
1x 2nd Round Pick

$1,544,425 - $2,340,037
1x 3rd Round Pick

≤ $1,544,424
No Compensation

https://puckpedia.com/news/nhl-announce ... heet-tiers

I believe they do have to be your own picks, so we wouldn't be able to go get a 3rd. I think we re-acquired our own pick from PIT last year.

[Old_Goat]

Shoot, I forgot about the 2nd & 3rd round picks needed to complete an RFA offer sheet! Thank you for pointing that out.
Well if we can hit big on our 1st Rounder this year, then maybe we go big on the offer that would require our 1st Rounder next year? Admittedly I have not taken the time to research if that also requires additional picks beyond just a first?

$9,360,154 - $11,700,192
2x 1st Round Picks
1x 2nd Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$7,020,114 - $9,360,153
1x 1st Round Pick
1x 2nd Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$4,680,077 - $7,020,113
1x 1st Round Pick
1x 3rd Round Pick

$2,340,038 - $4,680,076
1x 2nd Round Pick

$1,544,425 - $2,340,037
1x 3rd Round Pick

≤ $1,544,424
No Compensation

https://puckpedia.com/news/nhl-announce ... heet-tiers

I believe they do have to be your own picks, so we wouldn't be able to go get a 3rd. I think we re-acquired our own pick from PIT last year.

Right, got it. Thanks for re-informing those requirements.

[oldbattler]

anyone else thinkin he's coming back a game too soon?

Maybe
He looks to be scratched tonight.

I watch him at last game at the 13 45 mark of the 3rd period against the Oilers in the last game .
He kinda of got tangle up with a Oiler player and fell into the boards kinda legs first.

He got up and he look like he might be little hurt and went to the net and then to the Bench.

At ruffly at the1140 Mark .

They show him slightly bent over and kinda looking down at his legs and the assistant trainer was behind him talking to him.

He look like he was in some kind of discomfort .

I watch to see if he would come out for another shift for remaining 3rd period and he didn't.

So my guess, he might be scratched tonight if he is hurt again.
I don,t know but it looks like he is not playing tonight .

[stlblue06]

He got hurt around the same time as Sunny. Ray was with Sunny in the back and they showed Holloway in some pain. Man what a year this has been.

Hopefully it’s just precautionary

[oldbattler]

He got hurt around the same time as Sunny. Ray was with Sunny in the back and they showed Holloway in some pain. Man what a year this has been.

Hopefully it’s just precautionary

Yep.
That's how I saw. After I saw him fall legs first into the boards.

I told myself, I wouldn,t be surprised if he got hurt again and he doesn,t play in the next game and I hope I was wrong but nope.

He is not playing tonight.

[BluesDom]

Holloway has been my biggest disappointment so far this year. Player wise. The season is a mess.
He has had a really sh itty year. He had us all so pumped up before the injury last year.
Kyrou Hollway and Schenn line was great!
Hoping this isnt the Holloway that Edmonton knew.

[MiamiLaw]

Holloway has been my biggest disappointment so far this year. Player wise. The season is a mess.
He had a really sh itty year. He had us all so pumped up before the injury.
Hoping this isnt the Holloway that Edmonton knew.

He's definitely up there as far as disappointments. Trending for sub 40 points? I would have put a decent amount of money on the over on Oct 1. He's just been a complete non-factor when he's even been in the lineup.

[Harry S Deals]

Holloway has been my biggest disappointment so far this year. Player wise. The season is a mess.
He has had a really sh itty year. He had us all so pumped up before the injury last year.
Kyrou Hollway and Schenn line was great!
Hoping this isnt the Holloway that Edmonton knew.

Well the jury remains out. Upside is the Blues wont have to break the bank again to extend Holloway, may have to be arbitrated although Army is generally pretty generous.
One really good outing, one injury riddled outing.
We will see going forward i wouldnt panic yet over Holloway these arent recurring, structural injuries these are bad luck. My red flag is he does play hard, but he plays kinda face first if that makes sense, falls down awkwardly a lot. He needs to learn to moderate just a bit to remain on the ice