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Blues' retool fatigue? Dvorský call-up? Where are Winter Classic jerseys? Mailbag, part 2

31 October 2024Last Update :
Blues' retool fatigue? Dvorský call-up? Where are Winter Classic jerseys? Mailbag, part 2

ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Blues have wrapped up their first 10-game segment of the season, and they are 5-5. Are you satisfied? Optimistic? Pessimistic?

If you’re one of those fans who rides the emotional roller coaster, it’s the latter after the 8-1 thumping by the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.

The good news: There’s another game Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers. The bad news: The Blues are searching for the problem(s), and it won’t take long before they realize effort has been one recently.

“Internally, we’re going to have to figure out what the issues are,” coach Drew Bannister said. “As a group, we have to be more committed. That’s us as a whole, and the coaching staff is part of that. We have to be more committed to winning hockey and doing the little things in the game that give you opportunities to win.”

We offered some thoughts in part 1 of the mailbag, and from the remainder of our subscribers’ questions, we now offer part 2.

Note: Some questions have been edited lightly for length and clarity.

I am tired of the retool and don’t see any realistic solution to becoming a legitimate playoff contender. How much longer will this take? — Lamar O.

When I did my 10 bold predictions in September, one of them was “Bannister leads the Blues back to the playoffs.” This next sentence is what we call backtracking in the business, but I was trying to be bold. OK, you’re not buying that? Either way, even if they do make the playoffs, they’re not a legitimate contender, which gets back to your point.

Many fans have come to grips with the situation and applaud the transparency. Some are glad the club will remain somewhat competitive, even if it means finishing in the mushy middle. But for those like you, unfortunately, the Blues aren’t changing course. When I interviewed chairman Tom Stillman in May, he was completely committed to the retool.

How long will it take? I believe two to three more years before they’re a legitimate candidate for genuine success. It will take time to move out some of the aging veterans and for the top prospects to get into the organization and get experience. The additions of Philip Broberg and others will help, but I don’t believe that’s expedited the retool as much as others.

Wouldn’t the Blues be better off long-term getting a couple top-five picks over the next two or three years, rather than trudging in mediocrity over the next five years? — Bjwsix1

You could make that case, and I’ve made that argument before, but I don’t disagree with the response — there’s no guarantee it will only be five years. Let’s look at the teams that have done a legitimate tear-down in recent years: the Anaheim Ducks (six straight years without playoffs and counting), Chicago Blackhawks (four straight years, six out of seven, and still counting) and San Jose Sharks (five straight years and counting). The key here is none of them are even close to contending again.

Will fans and sponsors still offer their support and wait through that? Can the organization endure it? If you could tell the Blues it will take five years and you’ll come out with two top-five players, that might be attractive. But it could take eight years and just one of your top-five picks turns out to be a franchise player. There would still be a lot of risk, and it would take a lot of patience.

By putting Torey Krug on long-term injured reserve, the team is committing far more money to the payroll than it planned. Can ownership really afford to be $5-10 million over the cap in real dollars? — John B.

I’ll be honest: I’m shocked the Blues are spending this much money. They’re at the NHL’s $88 million salary cap and that does not include Krug’s $6.5 million salary. Now, keep in mind NHL teams get insurance on five to six contracts per season, so they may be getting money back on Krug’s salary — that information is not public.

Still, to make the contract offers to Broberg and Dylan Holloway and voluntarily spend beyond the cap during a retool is an incredible commitment by ownership. Whether they can afford it or not, I don’t have anyone in the investment group opening up the books for me, so all I can say is if they’re spending it, they must think they can stomach it.

Do you still think there’s a higher than 50 percent chance Jordan Kyrou will be traded before his no-trade clause kicks in? — Jay B.

This appears to be in reference to a comment I made on the radio last season in which, responding to a question, I said I thought there was a 50 to 60 percent chance of Kyrou being dealt before his full no-trade clause went into effect next summer.

Do I think it’s that high today? Probably not. As Blues coach Drew Bannister said recently, Kyrou is playing more of a “team-first game” and that’s what the club has wanted all along. He wasn’t doing that when I made the comment.

The thing with the Kyrou situation, though, has always been this: If he’s not playing well, who’s going to take a contract with an $8.125 million average annual value that runs through 2030-31? From the rest of the league’s perspective, that’s not a “let’s get him and see if a change of scenery helps” scenario.

To Kyrou’s credit, even though he hasn’t scored much this season, he’s played some of the best hockey I’ve seen him play in the NHL. I’d take this Jordan Kyrou any day, and that’s why I don’t think the Blues are entertaining the idea of moving him before his no-trade kicks in, as they might have been last season.

What do you think is the reason for the drop in Dalibor Dvorský’s value? When do you expect his call-up? — Michael J.

I don’t think Dvorský’s stock is down. I think he’s a prospect who’s finding his way into a very tough league. Jake Neighbours’ stock was said to be down before he scored 27 goals last season.

I could be wrong, but I don’t think we’ll see Dvorský with the Blues soon. Things could change if they continue to slide, but they sent him to AHL Springfield for a reason. While he’s got some great assets, he’s still raw. He’s got three goals and five points in eight games with the Thunderbirds and has been one of their more reliable players. So he’s getting the experience he needs, and I don’t think the Blues want to put him in a position of joining this team where he might come up and fail.

I’m hearing rumors about Jimmy Snuggerud not wanting to sign with the Blues and becoming a free agent. Thoughts? — Joseph W.

I can only go by what Snuggerud told me in April about signing when I asked him about Blues fans being worried. He replied: “I don’t know what the future holds, but to be honest, that would be the plan,” Snuggerud said. “I think one more year is my goal in mind. Next year would be the year.”

What is the status of Adam Jiříček? When will he be ready to play with his junior hockey team? — Richard Z.

The Blues’ first-round pick last summer, who was rehabbing from a torn knee ligament, was loaned to the Brantford Bulldogs of the OHL. The 18-year-old defenseman will make his season debut Friday against Erie Otters.

What would it take to trade for David Jiříček, Adam’s brother, from the Columbus Blue Jackets? — Todd H.

I don’t know if the Blues would have any interest, but Jiříček could be available. He was the No. 6 pick from the 2022 NHL Draft, and he hasn’t gotten any traction in Columbus yet. He didn’t have a great training camp and he’s only played a couple of games with the Blues Jackets this season. But he’s 6-foot-4, 204 pounds and still just 20 years old, so I wouldn’t think they’d be in a rush to move him and it probably wouldn’t be cheap if they did.

Has GM Doug Armstrong stocked the farm system enough that he would trade for a player to help this team make a run and earn more playoff experience? Or does he just let the kids play? — Andrew C.

If the Blues are in contention near the trade deadline, I could see Armstrong moving an asset for a player who could help. But let me be clear here: It wouldn’t be a prospect Armstrong truly thinks is a part of the future. He’s not trading that type of player to make the playoffs. But yeah, I do believe the team has enough in the cupboard that it could hang onto the higher-end prospects and still find a deal that improves the team.

How do coaches communicate to players during a game that they are being benched, shifted to another line, etc.? — Chris M.

I took this question to a former NHL player, and here’s what he said: At the start of the game, when everyone knows the lines, most coaches yell out the center’s name and his line takes the ice. When there are changes during the game, the coach will bark out the names of the three guys he wants on the line. If you don’t hear your name, you know you’re on another line, or if you don’t hear your name at all, you know you’ve been benched.

Typically when there are brothers on the same team, they put the first initial of the first name and the last name on the back of the jersey. But the Joseph brothers just have “Joseph.” What’s up with that? — Jeremy B.

It’s funny you ask because when I did an interview with them last July, I asked them if they were going to put the first initial on their jerseys. Mathieu replied: “That’s a good question!” and then explained to P.O. they’d have to make a decision on that. Then about a week later, I saw the Blues announce the brothers went without the initial. But unfortunately, I haven’t asked why yet. I will one day and report back.

Would you consider doing another edition of the “Why each Blue chose their jersey number” story? — Pace E.

I did this story back in 2022 and fans seemed to like it. There are some new players now, and thus some new personal stories about the numbers, but I’m afraid there may be a little too much redundancy. I’ll think about that one. In the meantime, I am working on a fun locker room story a former colleague of mine did with the Calgary Flames in 2019 that fans might like, too.

Would it be possible to do a Blues-only survey of the players’ favorite NHL city, best player in the league, least favorite player, best chirper, biggest rival, etc. — Scott F.

I did something similar to this in 2020 and had a blast with it. I’m making plans to do another one soon.

My wife and I would like to see an article on how Blues TV broadcaster John Kelly prepares for a game. How does he learn to pronounce the names of all of the players and translate numbers to names so quickly when calling the game? — Joe R.

Over the years, I’ve watched John work the Blues’ locker room for little nuggets that he can use during the game, and I’ve also watched him go over the name pronunciations with the other team’s broadcasters. But I never thought about writing a story about this. I’ll ask John if he’s interested, and we’ll go from there.

Do you know when the Blues plan to reveal the Winter Classic Jerseys? — Cory S.

Expect them to hit just before Thanksgiving.

(Top photo: Marc DesRosiers / Imagn Images)

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