2021 Training Camp

[jura]

2021 Training Camp: Schedule and Roster

The St. Louis Blues will hit the ice for the first sessions of training camp - presented by Ashley HomeStore - on Thursday, Sept. 23 at Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights.
All Blues practices held on the USA Rink at Centene Community Ice Center will be free and open to the public. Due to limited space and COVID-19 protocols, practices held on the Blues' rink will be closed to the public. Per Maryland Heights policy, fans attending training camp sessions are required to wear masks at all times while inside the facility.
The training camp schedule for the first two days of camp is listed below. Additional days open to the public will be added at a later date.
Camp Schedule

Sept. 23
9:30 a.m. - Team 1 practice (USA Rink)
Noon - Team 2 practice (USA Rink)
Sept. 24
10 a.m. - Team 2 practice (USA Rink)
11:30 a.m. - Team 1 practice (USA Rink)
Practices at USA Rink will last approximately 30 minutes
Camp Roster

Forwards:
Sam Anas (33), Nikita Alexandrov (59), Ivan Barbashev (49), Tyler Bozak (21), Pavel Buchnevich (89), Kyle Clifford (13), Tanner Dickinson (78), Dakota Joshua (54), Tanner Kaspick (83), Klim Kostin (37), Jordan Kyrou (25), Mathias Laferriere (58), Mackenzie MacEachern (28), Hugh McGing (56), Jake Neighbours (63), Ryan O'Reilly (90), Matthew Peca (53), David Perron (57), Brandon Saad (20), Zach Sanford (12), Brayden Schenn (10), Nolan Stevens (51), Vladimir Tarasenko (91), Nathan Todd (61), Alexei Toropchenko (65), Nathan Walker (26), Keean Washkurak (40).

Defense: Robert Bortuzzo (41), Tommy Cross (52), Justin Faulk (71), Tyson Galloway (71), Torey Krug (47), Griffin Luce (62), Niko Mikkola (77), Colton Parayko (55), Scott Perunovich (48), Calle Rosen (43), Steven Santini (36), Marco Scandella (6), Tyler Tucker (75), Jake Walman (46), Josh Wesley (86).

Goalies: Jordan Binnington (50), Will Cranley (85), Colten Ellis (45), Joel Hofer (1), Ville Husso (35), Charlie Lindgren (39).

Professional Tryouts: Michael Frolik (67), James Neal (81)

Injured: Zack Bolduc (76), Oskar Sundqvist (70).

Click to read more...

 

[kimzey59]

Did the Blues sign Griffin Luce without me noticing(not complaining; he seems like he might have a future as a bottom pair stay at home type)?
I know he was part of the Traverse City team, but I haven't seen anything about us signing him.
If not; he's on an Amateur Try Out contract.

Also; is Josh Wesley(Glen's son) signed or is he another ATO?

 

[Linkens Mastery]

Did the Blues sign Griffin Luce without me noticing(not complaining; he seems like he might have a future as a bottom pair stay at home type)?
I know he was part of the Traverse City team, but I haven't seen anything about us signing him.
If not; he's on an Amateur Try Out contract.

Also; is Josh Wesley(Glen's son) signed or is he another ATO?

He is signed with Springfield on an AHL deal.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

Did the Blues sign Griffin Luce without me noticing(not complaining; he seems like he might have a future as a bottom pair stay at home type)?
I know he was part of the Traverse City team, but I haven't seen anything about us signing him.
If not; he's on an Amateur Try Out contract.

Also; is Josh Wesley(Glen's son) signed or is he another ATO?

Luce and Wesley got signed by Springfield to AHL deals!

 

[bleedblue1223]

Early lines don't mean all that much until camp gets trimmed down and becomes 1 group, but they are definitely giving Perunovich and Neighbors and opportunity to make the big team IMO.

 

[Thallis]

Early lines don't mean all that much until camp gets trimmed down and becomes 1 group, but they are definitely giving Perunovich and Neighbors and opportunity to make the big team IMO.

Not too surprising since JR said they wanted to take a long look at Neighbors over camp. My thoughts were either they don't have much faith in Kostin and think Neighbors should or already has overtaken him, or they really want to figure out what they have in Neighbors and craft a plan forward for him. I think the second option is more likely, and it wouldn't necessarily mean they expect him to make the team despite the opportunity given.

 

[bleedblue1223]

Kostin is with O'Reilly and Kyrou, so it feels like they are giving him and Neighbors and opportunity to win a top 9 spot. Kostin likely has the inside track, but the goal is to figure out which would be the better option this season.

 

[BlueDream]

I don’t think the Neighbours line means anything. Look at that group, who else are you gonna put on Schenn’s line? The rest of the guys are grinders or clear AHL’ers.

We don’t have any room for him to make the team.

 

[rumrokh]

If you're trying to read tea leaves about Neighbors and Kostin, the Blues sent multiple players to the prospects tourney who are older than Kostin. Unless there's some other known reason, that strongly suggests they don't think Kostin has anything to prove at that level and he's a significant rung higher on the depth chart as far as management is concerned.

 

[Brian39]

Not too surprising since JR said they wanted to take a long look at Neighbors over camp. My thoughts were either they don't have much faith in Kostin and think Neighbors should or already has overtaken him, or they really want to figure out what they have in Neighbors and craft a plan forward for him. I think the second option is more likely, and it wouldn't necessarily mean they expect him to make the team despite the opportunity given.

Also worth noting that it is still NHL or junior for Neighbors. Even if they think Kostin is better right now, there is a chance that Neighbors sticks around for a 9 game stint in the NHL to gain some experience before being sent back to junior and replaced with Kostin.

 

[Brian39]

I don’t think the Neighbours line means anything. Look at that group, who else are you gonna put on Schenn’s line? The rest of the guys are grinders or clear AHL’ers.

We don’t have any room for him to make the team.

I think it is pretty likely that the groups are a result of the combinations they want to try rather than the combinations being decided after the groups are determined. They easily could have put Perron with Schenn/Buch and then put Neighbors in Perron's spot with Neal and Bozak. But they didn't, which almost certainly means that the team wants to see how Neighbors looks with middle/top 6 talent on his line.

 

[jura]

There was no shortage of intrigue for the St. Louis Blues on their first day of training camp.
As the players took the ice for the first time on Thursday morning at Centene Community Ice Center, you couldn't help but notice the familiar faces that weren't in attendance this year - players like Jaden Schwartz, Sammy Blais, Vince Dunn and Carl Gunnarsson, to name a few.
In their places were a handful of newcomers, from veterans Brandon Saad and Pavel Buchnevich to pro tryouts James Neal and Michael Frolik to highly-touted youngsters like Klim Kostin, Jake Neighbours and Scott Perunovich.
Indeed, this year's Blues squad is quite different from the one that finished the season with a first-round playoff exit last May. If you dig deeper, you'll find that only 12 players on this year's training camp roster even played in the 2019 Stanley Cup Final when the club captured its first-ever championship.
So all that turnover leads us to one big question - exactly where do all these new guys fit?
Blues Head Coach Craig Berube and his coaching staff spent the summer trying to figure that out, and on Thursday, we got a look at some of their ideas for the first time.
In no particular order, here are some of the combinations we saw during the opening sessions of training camp:
FORWARDS

Klim Kostin - Ryan O'Reilly - Jordan Kyrou
Jake Neighbours - Brayden Schenn - Pavel Buchnevich
Brandon Saad - Robert Thomas - Vladimir Tarasenko
David Perron - Tyler Bozak - James Neal
Zach Sanford - Ivan Barbashev - Michael Frolik
Kyle Clifford - Dakota Joshua - Mackenzie MacEachern
DEFENSE

Jake Walman - Colton Parayko
Scott Perunovich - Justin Faulk
Marco Scandella - Robert Bortuzzo
Torey Krug - Niko Mikkola
GOALIES

Jordan Binnington
Ville Husso

Blues open training camp

• 01:20 • September 23rd, 2021

"We've got some new faces which adds a lot to us, gives us that excitement that we need," O'Reilly said. "Last year was very disappointing, we weren't consistent with the way we wanted to play. Some new looks, some new faces brings that excitement. It's still very early, we have to work hard in camp and see how things unfold a bit, but I'm very optimistic. I really like our group and I think we're going to do very well."
Up front, the dynamic combination of Kostin, O'Reilly and Kyrou is certainly exciting, and we can't wait to see what 2020 first-round draft pick Neighbours could do with talented players like Schenn and Buchnevich. And how about perennial 20-plus goal guy Saad with the slick mitts of Thomas and the pure scoring ability of Tarasenko?
On the backend, we know Parayko and Walman paired well together last season, and Perunovich - who was one of the best players in Traverse City last week - gets an amazing opportunity to showcase his stuff with Justin Faulk. Then there's Torey Krug, Marco Scandella, Robert Bortuzzo, Niko Mikkola…
We could go on and on, but we can't wait to see what these line combos and pairings can do.
Of course, like O'Reilly said, it's very early. There is no guarantee that all of these combinations will stick. Right now, the 53 players in training camp are divided into two groups, and as camp continues, more and more will be assigned to the American Hockey League or back to their junior teams.
But there is a chance we get to see some of these line combinations in an exhibition - the preseason starts with two home games at Enterprise Center (Saturday, Sept. 25 vs. Minnesota and Monday, Sept. 27 vs. Dallas).
And if you couldn't tell… we can't wait.

c/p
New faces bring plenty of intrigue to Blues training camp

 

[rumrokh]

Tarasenko's face looks thinner than I've ever seen. I would love if that means he's a step quicker instead of just hulking out (which might have contributed to his shoulder issues in the first place).

 

[Mike Liut]

Kostin is going to grab a top 9 spot and never look back. 22 year old monster

 

[Brockon]

Kostin is going to grab a top 9 spot and never look back. 22 year old monster

Love the optimism! Can I ask what this is based off? Have you been able to watch either live or footage of Kostin?

 

[bleedblue1223]

Tarasenko's face looks thinner than I've ever seen. I would love if that means he's a step quicker instead of just hulking out (which might have contributed to his shoulder issues in the first place).

Yeah, if he can get a burst of speed that he had more in his earlier career before he focused on strength and heavier lifting, it'll help him big time IMO.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

It feels like the Neighbours showcase here is more of a reward for showing up early on his own dime. You want other prospects to show the same level of commitment? Reward the ones that already do. I’d say the chances of him making this team are slim to none with how close to the cap we are, and how many veterans we need to fit in 12 roster spots.

 

[joe galiba]

Yeah, if he can get a burst of speed that he had more in his earlier career before he focused on strength and heavier lifting, it'll help him big time IMO.

Have you ever seen 100 meter sprinters?
they are not little thin guys, they are all ripped
strength is developed by working at building and maintaining strength
speed is developed by working on building and maintaining speed
you can do both, they are not mutually exclusive
the limitations are your ability to work on them and your genetics

 

[BlueDream]

Berube confirmed there wasn’t much thought put into the lines and if anything he’s just looking for young players to gain confidence.

 

[bleedblue1223]

Have you ever seen 100 meter sprinters?
they are not little thin guys, they are all ripped
strength is developed by working at building and maintaining strength
speed is developed by working on building and maintaining speed
you can do both, they are not mutually exclusive
the limitations are your ability to work on them and your genetics

If your training is focused on bulk like Tarsenko's has over the last many years, then you will lose some speed and stamina. It's why Ovechkin who trained similarly for bl has changed his routine in recent years, so he can stay more effective during 5v5 as he ages.

 

[Mike Liut]

Love the optimism! Can I ask what this is based off? Have you been able to watch either live or footage of Kostin?

He’s exactly what this team needs. Size, toughness, physicality, scoring, plays with an edge. He’s my kind of a player. Reminds me of Keith tkachuk

 

[Thallis]

He’s exactly what this team needs. Size, toughness, physicality, scoring, plays with an edge. He’s my kind of a player. Reminds me of Keith tkachuk

<.4 PPG at 21 in the KHL doesn't really indicate a scorer

 

[Mike Liut]

<.4 PPG at 21 in the KHL doesn't really indicate a scorer

Who were his line mates? What if he’s on the 3rd line with Thomas and Tarasenko? He’ll score 20g on that line just showing up. He’s a force and has the build to back it up.

 

[Mike Liut]

I’m fully aware I’m a homer, so don’t take me too serious.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

I have low expectations for Kostin. I'm hoping he can become a legit 3rd line player who fits on an effective line, punishes opponents a bit and doesn't drag down his teammates. But I had low expectations for Kyrou too, thinking he was going to be another Rattie. So I'll cheer for Kostin and hope to be proven totally wrong again. But some of the projections for him posted on here seem to ignore his actual accomplishments to date.