Grading the Blues Offseason

[Sophisticated Shoes]

Grading the Blues Offseason:
A++++
DONE!
Good to GO!
Get those season tickets
Average NHL rebuild: 5–7 years
Shortest retool: 2–3 years
Colorado Avalanche (3 years)
2017: Worst season in modern NHL history (48 points)
2018–2019: Draft core emerges (MacKinnon, Rantanen, Makar)
2020: Legit contender, President’s Trophy level team

Why it’s the fastest:
They rebuilt through elite drafting and hit on every major pick. No shortcuts.
_____________________

When the Blues’ Rebuild Actually Started
The rebuild began the moment the Blues traded:

Ryan O’Reilly (Feb 2023)

Vladimir Tarasenko (Feb 2023)

Ivan Barbashev (Feb 2023)

Those three moves signaled a full teardown of the Cup core.

Start date: February 2023
Today: July 2026
Elapsed: ~2.5 years
Projected Blues Points (2026–27 Season)
Projection: 88–94 points
This puts them right on the playoff bubble — slightly better than last year’s 86 points, but not yet a top‑tier contender.
No Elite Scoring Center Yet
Until they land a true 1C, they cap out around 90–95 points.

I'm pretty sure Colorado sucked ballz for years.
2010-2011 Season: Finished 4th in Northwest Division w/ 68 points
2011-2012 Season: Finished 3rd in NW Division missing playoffs
2012–13 Season: Finished 5th in the Northwest Division
2013–14 Season: Finished 1st in the Central Division (An unexpected division title and playoff berth)
2014–15 Season: Finished 7th in the Central Division
2015–16 Season: Finished 6th in the Central Division
2016–17 Season: Finished 7th in the Central Division (A historically poor season where the team finished last in the entire NHL)
2018–2019: Draft core emerges (MacKinnon, Rantanen, Makar)

That's a classic tankathon team, which I will never respect.

[son_of_foolsgold]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

[The Average Gatsby]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

[a smell of green grass]

The 2023 draft was a BUST? LOL.

Dvorsky turned 21 in June, Stenberg in May Lindstein in January.

Dvorsky played most of the season in the NHL as essentially (ice time) the 3C.

Stenberg got his feet wet in the NHL, sent back to AHL ostensibly to keep playing through the break. Finished in Springfield.

The lowest pick, #29? Lindstein finished the season as the Blues 2LD, looking every bit the part.

If the Blues get NOTHING more from Dvorsky and Stenberg (HA!) and Lindstein sticks as a legitimate 2LD the Blues WON this draft class. Of course, they look to get a much greater return.

It's 2026, and Dvorsky, Stenberg, and Linstein are 100 feet off the fairway. The only place that they are relevant is BluesTalk--for some people.
Army/Steen have moved on from them as far as being core. Maybe they make it or stick to the 3rd- or 4th-line someday...but that's it.

So the highly-touted three 2023 draft picks landed us organizational depth--MAYBE. No way that anyone would have been happy with that back in 2023. The 2023 draft was a bust. Teams don't go through a re-whatever to PICK UP A COUPLE OF 3rd-liners.

[son_of_foolsgold]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

You just don't get it do you? If the Blues drafted as well as other teams in 2023, their picks should have produced more points than other teams. They had more high quality picks.. IF their picks didn't make the NHL it just proves their draft was a failure!

Sounds like you should have repeated kindergarten.

[Bacchk29]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

[BleedingBleu]

Dvorsky is 10th in games played from the 2023 draft class and overall the entire class has played 122 games overall and two of them did not turn 21 until after the season ended.

Jiricek played six AHL playoff games after his junior team got eliminated from the playoffs. By the elimination game he was on the top pair at 19 years old in the third round of the playoffs in the second best league in the world. He was the voted the best defenseman in the under 2026 world junior championship, and he averaged over 25 minutes a game for the Bulldogs in the playoffs in 15 post season games. Yah, he sucks

[BleedingBleu]

In summary....

The Blues NEEDED a re-whatever to acquire a new CORE. Winning a CUP is only possible if you have a dominant main core. Instead, the Blues "stayed competitive" to complete the seasons for the sake of the cash register, and as a result, they selected in the middle of Round 1 for the re-whatever. They accomplished NOTHING with those 2023 Round 1 picks -- UNLESS YOU WANT TO STOCK UP ON BOTTOM6 TALENT. Then they doubled-down and did the same in 2024 with Jiricek.

Where do we stand now?
-Mailoux was brought in to "hide" Jiricek.
-McTavish was brought in to "hide" Dvorsky.
-McMichael was brought in to "hide" Stenberg.

So welcome our new Blues CORE. They did not come via the NHL Draft. We have no Makar or McKinnon or McKenna. Nope, our new core is the McBooby prize, McTavish, McMichael, and McMailloux. Every one one of them could not get consistent playing time on weak times. For the Blues, they are now INSTANT CORE for the next 5 years.

You are just making things up as usual. Legit question, though, do you even watch hockey? I’m being serious, because I have never seen you make a legit hockey point. You come up with a really uneducated take and then use stats to try and make said point valid, but you never discuss the games. Ever. Never discuss players skills or abilities. I don’t know that I have ever seen you post in the the game day theeads. The previous trolls at least knew hockey. You have never posted anything to indicate you have even a basic understanding of the game. Is that correct?

Lol how dumb, these guys werent brought in to " hide" anyone laughable. Dvorsky just turned 21 to anoint him as the "2C" may be is fine but why put the pressure on him zero need. May be he surpasses McTavish, great. Thomas wasnt a top 6 scoring center and 20 or 21 yrs old.
Jiricek has had almost ZERO pro experience yet what does Mailloux have to do with Jiricek the Blues will need more than one RD lol.
Again same with Stenberg, almost ZERO pro experience why thrust him into a top 9 role when hes 21 yrs old he will earn a spot is my guess hes play in the NHL has been impressive. Giving Stenberg a guaranteed spot in training camp because there is no other depth is a fail. Camp should be competitive this year, the best players will earn the spots which is where the franchise needs to be

Right? Are they brought in the same way O’Reilly was brought in to “hide” Thomas? Or Bouwmeester was brought in to “hide” Parayko? Schenn was brought in to “hide” Barbashev?

It was such an utterly stupid take, I can’t even begin to fathom what he thinks Monty came here for…

[The Average Gatsby]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.

IMG_0799.jpeg

[BluesDom]

Dvorsky made it to the NHL faster than Owen Tippet.
Owen Tippet is at 51 pts--in his prime now going forward.
Anton Silayev hasnt played in NHL at all.
Pavel Mintyukov 69 points in 204 games--1 yr older.
Tyler Boucher hasnt made NHL.
Dvorsky may eclipse Perfetti's point production. Jost and Podkolzin he will be better.

[Bacchk29]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.IMG_0799.jpeg

It’s a fair point about the 10th pick. I’m addressing the draft and the quality of the picks at this juncture. There’s no impact so far. Stenberg and Lindstein aren’t expected to make the club this year. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed veterans to block the path.

[The Average Gatsby]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.IMG_0799.jpeg

It’s a fair point about the 10th pick. I’m addressing the draft and the quality of the picks at this juncture. There’s no impact so far. Stenberg and Lindstein aren’t expected to make the club this year. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed veterans to block the path.

This bolded part is also not true. We didn’t acquire any LD at all so I’m not sure who is going block Lindstein. The only forward we signed is Ross Johnston and if he’s playing any higher than the 4th line this team is in serious trouble.

As for the trades, McMichael replaces Kyrou and McTavish replaces Schenn. I’m not 100% sure that Stenberg will make the team but we didn’t acquire anyone to block him either.

[Bacchk29]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.IMG_0799.jpeg

It’s a fair point about the 10th pick. I’m addressing the draft and the quality of the picks at this juncture. There’s no impact so far. Stenberg and Lindstein aren’t expected to make the club this year. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed veterans to block the path.

This bolded part is also not true. We didn’t acquire any LD at all so I’m not sure who is going block Lindstein. The only forward we signed is Ross Johnston and if he’s playing any higher than the 4th line this team is in serious trouble.

As for the trades, McMichael replaces Kyrou and McTavish replaces Schenn. I’m not 100% sure that Stenberg will make the team but we didn’t acquire anyone to block him either.

Torpo Johnston Berggren Sunny Walker if Stenberg can’t make the top 9 he won’t be here. Tucker still under contract Lindstein won’t take Kessels place as 7th D. You don’t think there’s veterans blocking their path?

[SpacemanSpiff]

Dvorsky was drafted 10th overall.

Currently, he's played the 10th most games from his draft year.

Currently, he sits at 12th in goals and 16th in points from that draft year.

Pending any injuries, he should play the whole season this year - he'll be centering a line to be determined, and he'll most likely be on a power play unit.

I believe he'll eclipse 30 points while continuing his growth into the second line center we need.

[DawgDad]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.IMG_0799.jpeg

It’s a fair point about the 10th pick. I’m addressing the draft and the quality of the picks at this juncture. There’s no impact so far. Stenberg and Lindstein aren’t expected to make the club this year. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed veterans to block the path.

This bolded part is also not true. We didn’t acquire any LD at all so I’m not sure who is going block Lindstein. The only forward we signed is Ross Johnston and if he’s playing any higher than the 4th line this team is in serious trouble.

As for the trades, McMichael replaces Kyrou and McTavish replaces Schenn. I’m not 100% sure that Stenberg will make the team but we didn’t acquire anyone to block him either.

Torpo Johnston Berggren Sunny Walker if Stenberg can’t make the top 9 he won’t be here. Tucker still under contract Lindstein won’t take Kessels place as 7th D. You don’t think there’s veterans blocking their path?

Finally got something right, the 2LD is NOT a threat to take Kessel's spot. Sheesh.

[The Average Gatsby]

My favorite part of this is that he said blues draft picks from the 2023 draft have only scored 35 points but players from across the class have scored 1,000 points. 1,000 points divided by 32 teams is….31.25 points.

The Blues had 3 1st round picks in 2023...therefore their expected number of points produced should be higher than the average.

That doesn’t make any sense just a couple of years after the draft ya doofus. Only a handful of players make the jump straight to the nhl so of course they’re going to score more total points than guys that were drafted later. This only hard to understand if you’re incredibly stupid.

The point I made is simple...and valid. If you have 3 first round picks, that's nearly 10% of the 1st round. Epected # of points by Blues draftees should therefore be higher than average.

Not when the draft was only a couple of years ago. None of those 3 players drafted by the blues have even played a full season in the nhl yet. You can’t accumulate points in the nhl if you aren’t playing in it dumb[ash]. You’re point would be valid after a decade but now it just makes you look like a fool.

10th overall pick should be a 2C w/ 50-60 pt year this year. Apparently the GM doesn’t see that happening thus the McTavish deal. Otherwise you have a bottom 6 and a 3rd pair D out of that draft.

Dvorsky has played 70 games, Stenberg has played 30, and Lindstein has played 20. You don’t know what any of them are going to be yet. And expecting someone to be a 2C 50-60 pt player when they’re 21 just because they’re the 10th overall pick is simply not true. Here’s the last 10 years of 10th overall picks.IMG_0799.jpeg

It’s a fair point about the 10th pick. I’m addressing the draft and the quality of the picks at this juncture. There’s no impact so far. Stenberg and Lindstein aren’t expected to make the club this year. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed veterans to block the path.

This bolded part is also not true. We didn’t acquire any LD at all so I’m not sure who is going block Lindstein. The only forward we signed is Ross Johnston and if he’s playing any higher than the 4th line this team is in serious trouble.

As for the trades, McMichael replaces Kyrou and McTavish replaces Schenn. I’m not 100% sure that Stenberg will make the team but we didn’t acquire anyone to block him either.

Torpo Johnston Berggren Sunny Walker if Stenberg can’t make the top 9 he won’t be here. Tucker still under contract Lindstein won’t take Kessels place as 7th D. You don’t think there’s veterans blocking their path?

You said we signed veterans to block them. Tucker was here last year and Lindstein played over him down the stretch. I’d be very surprised if Tucker plays and Lindstein goes to the minors. I’m less sure about Stenberg. But of the forwards you listed only Johnston is new to the team. I guess you could make the argument they “added” Sunny and Berggren since they re-signed them. But realistically the only person I could see playing on the 3rd line over Stenberg is Berggren. Toro, Johnston, Sunny and Walker are all 4th liners at best.