2024-2025 Blues Multi-Purpose Thread.
- Thread starter simon IC
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The difference is that they are trying to get Bolduc to a certain level and playing a specific way, while guy like Sunny is who he is (declining player trying to hang on). It’s about making sure we don’t become Sabres or Sens, and holding the kids to high standards is part of that.
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TheOrganist
Don't Call Him Alex
- Feb 21, 2006
- 4,862
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That’s fair. I believe in Monty’s X’s and O’s smarts that he’s seeing something on tape that is hindering him from trusting Bolduc and giving him better usage. Like I said, I’m hopeful as I like Monty and I still like Bolduc’s potential.
How does stapling him to the declining player trying to move on, then benching him out of a 3-game point streak, then sitting him for half a game when he did nothing wrong, followed by more scratches get him to that level? Then randomly throw him onto a line that is struggling as a last ditch effort to save it where he'll take the blame if it doesn't produce.
What did he do to deserve to get benched? Scrathced? What is the standard? Shouldn't you hold everyone to the same standard? Does singling out the kid to hold to a higher standard than everyone else develop him?
- Jul 4, 2014
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Monty has enough goodwill at this juncture here to have earned the benefit of the doubt, though it is frustrating for fans. I suspect that there are a lot of little details (plays he made but shouldn't/plays he should have made but didn't) that has him out of the lineup to work on those things in practice before applying them again in a game setting. I think back to Hitch's mantra of "stopping on pucks" and being on the "right side of pucks" and I think it is probably just some of the details of playing good, smart hockey as opposed to effort or results. The kids has a good motor and goes to the net, and I'm sure he'll have it figured out by season's end.
shpongle falls
Ass Möde
FINALLY they’re going to put Bolduc on a line with Thomas, hopefully Bolduc’s youthful enthusiasm will get Thomas and Buch out of their slump and spark some offense.
I think I'm about at the point where I'm no longer opposed to losing games.
We're 5 points back of CGY who has 3 games in hand on us, and we're 8 points back from COL. Those are your two current wild card teams we're trying to catch right now. But I doubt we catch either unless we can string together more than 2 wins in a row (which we still haven't done this season). We do play COL 4 more times this season, so there's that, but I don't see us doing any better than splitting those points with them.
On the flip side, we're only 4 points away from picking 5th overall. Right behind us is PHI, UTA, NYI, PIT, SEA, and ANA in descending order (ANA currently picking 5th).
Us and PHI have almost identical records, and I think it's a 50/50 chance right now that they pass us by the end of the season.
Both UTA and NYI are 1 point back with 2 games in hand, so I wouldn't be surprised to see both of them pass us. We play UTA 3 more times and we all know how we play against them, so we'll almost certainly lose at least 2 of those games. NYI has been hot lately, so I could definitely see them passing us sooner rather than later.
PIT is 2 points back and we have a game in hand on them. They've been pretty bad this season so I doubt they catch us, but we also still have to play them twice this season so there's potential there.
Then there's SEA who is 3 points back, but we play them 2 more times.
Lastly, ANA is 4 points back with a game in hand, we play them 2 more times as well.
I'd say that currently we could pick anywhere from 5th overall to maybe 13th? 14th? With 8th-12th being the most likely at this point. But there's a real chance we could sneak into that 5th-7th area.
We're 5 points back of CGY who has 3 games in hand on us, and we're 8 points back from COL. Those are your two current wild card teams we're trying to catch right now. But I doubt we catch either unless we can string together more than 2 wins in a row (which we still haven't done this season). We do play COL 4 more times this season, so there's that, but I don't see us doing any better than splitting those points with them.
On the flip side, we're only 4 points away from picking 5th overall. Right behind us is PHI, UTA, NYI, PIT, SEA, and ANA in descending order (ANA currently picking 5th).
Us and PHI have almost identical records, and I think it's a 50/50 chance right now that they pass us by the end of the season.
Both UTA and NYI are 1 point back with 2 games in hand, so I wouldn't be surprised to see both of them pass us. We play UTA 3 more times and we all know how we play against them, so we'll almost certainly lose at least 2 of those games. NYI has been hot lately, so I could definitely see them passing us sooner rather than later.
PIT is 2 points back and we have a game in hand on them. They've been pretty bad this season so I doubt they catch us, but we also still have to play them twice this season so there's potential there.
Then there's SEA who is 3 points back, but we play them 2 more times.
Lastly, ANA is 4 points back with a game in hand, we play them 2 more times as well.
I'd say that currently we could pick anywhere from 5th overall to maybe 13th? 14th? With 8th-12th being the most likely at this point. But there's a real chance we could sneak into that 5th-7th area.
Agree that 8-12 is most likely. I would love if we were picking 5-7 though and had a chance to grab a future top 6 forward or top 4 Dman. I am a Blues fan thru and thru, and hate seeing them lose. It just seems that is where they are headed this season unfortunately.
- Feb 12, 2008
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PocketNines
Cutter's Way
They left themselves no runway and they aren't good enough to execute. They gave themselves a chance with the two wins against Calgary but Blues shat the bed, failed, and now they're done.
Calgary is a +8 and the Blues are even. There's only 30+ games to play. They are not catching Calgary, it's over.
For reference they have spent the last 37 games and also the last 24 games remaining even. Suddenly over their final 32 games they're going to be +8, while Calgary stays even? LOL, nope.
It is sell time and see the prospects time after the 4 Nations Break
Calgary is a +8 and the Blues are even. There's only 30+ games to play. They are not catching Calgary, it's over.
For reference they have spent the last 37 games and also the last 24 games remaining even. Suddenly over their final 32 games they're going to be +8, while Calgary stays even? LOL, nope.
It is sell time and see the prospects time after the 4 Nations Break
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Agree. Even if Calgary plays at a .500 clip the rest of the season (currently at .585), they will end with 90 points and the Blues would have to play at a .620 clip just to tie them. I don't think either of those scenarios are a given. Also, VAN and UTAH are still right there, so it would take 3 teams all playing at .500 or less for the Blues to sneak in. Personally, I think it will take 95-97 points to claim the WC2 spot. It's a pipe dream at this point IMHO. It sucks, as they did put themselves in a great position after defeating Calgary twice but have gone 1-3 since that point.
kimzey59
Registered User
- Aug 16, 2003
- 6,446
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1- You don't have to pick in the top 5 to find a top 6 forward or top 4 D man. Every single draft has guys picked outside of the top 5 who reach that level of impact.
2- I get that drafting higher is better.
But it's annoying to see people acting like there's some massive difference between picking 5-7 and 8-12. The talent gap in any given draft just isn't that big. That just isn't how the Draft functions. You typically have to be talking increments of 10-15 spots before any real talent gap becomes evident.
3- Talking specifically about this years Draft:
The current tiers appear to be Top 3(Schaeffer, Hagens, Misa); 4-14(more on this in a second), and another gap around pick 17/18(Lakovich, Bear, Spence and Carbonneau are probably the final players in this group).
Currently in the 5-7 spots are Frondell, McQueen and Desnoyers.
In the 9-12 spots: O'Brien, Smith, Hensler, Mrtka.
Is there a gap? Possibly. The first group seems to be "safer" prospects, but I'm not sure if the impact will really be all that different.
Is the gap the difference between "top 6 forward/top 4 D man" or "NOT a top 6 forward/top 4 D man"? Absolutely not. You're still getting a very high quality prospect with that second group. I could pretty easily see O'Brien outproduce any of those "5-7 group" forwards. The runway might be longer for them to reach their potential(more risk factor), but the impact potential is absolutely there(upside).
Even in the group below that one(Ryabkin, Martin, Aitcheson, Fiddler, Cootes), there's upside for top 6/top 4 potential(just a LOT of risk factor involved with that group).
BadgersandBlues
Registered User
- Jun 6, 2011
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I get what you're saying, but if I could have had Buium or Dickinson at 11 or 12 instead of Jiricek at 16, I'd have been all over it. That seems like a huge jump in quality in four picks. Then again, the last two year's drafts have been pretty loaded overall imo.
I don't think the Blues had Buium ranked higher than Jiricek. I thought he was better prospect, you thought he was better, most every public list had Buium higher, but based on what we saw on the video and the other D they added in the draft, I am fairly confident that the Blues would have taken Jiricek at 12.
Brian39
Registered User
- Apr 24, 2014
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Following the 2 wins against Calgary, my thought was that wee needed to snag at least 6 points in the last 6 games in January to really keep the playoff hope alive. Obviously you need to average much better than .500 over the remaining games, but the very difficult strength of schedule to close the month was enough for me to think 'tread water and bank enough points here to stay alive.'
We've earned just 2 points through the first 4 of those games, so they have to win tonight and Friday (@Colorado) to hit my minimum goal.
I'm not yet hoping for losses, but the runway is getting real short. Tonight is damn-near a must win since we still have to leap frog Vancouver in addition to the Wild Card teams we're chasing.
While I didn't love every bit of our play, I can't say that a 1-2 record against Vegas and Dallas in a 3 game stretch is inexcusable or surprising for a bubble team. Realistically, that is probably about the expected result when you play 3 games against teams in the argument for top 5 in the league. But it leaves you with zero margin for error in the next couple weeks when you play non-top-5 teams. Our final 6 games pre-break are against teams that are currently 18th, 12th, 25th, 3rd, 11th, and 31st by points percentage. Pretty much have to go 4-1-1 in that stretch. Maybe 3-1-2 or 4-2 keeps you in the hunt if Calgary stumbles, but I think 9 points is probably the minimum. When you play to expected results when you have a brutal week, you just have to get hot the next couple weeks when you have a manageable stretch.
As of right now, I'm content waiting to see where things stand by the 4 Nations break before I hit that mindset that I'm not opposed to losing. But any safety net is gone. There is no longer time for moral victories, getting goalied, or taking positives out of losses. Their backs are against the wall.
bleedblue1223
Registered User
- Jan 21, 2011
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Yeah, I'm pretty pessimistic now. After those wins against the Flames, the Flames won 3 out of 4 with 2 of those wins against Winnipeg and Minnesota. We followed it with 1 win against Vegas and losses to Vegas, Utah, and Dallas. Flames still have 2 games in hand, so that 5 point gap, could be 7 or 9 point gap.
If this team is going to make the playoffs, they have to get in that mentality and get some actual win streaks put together.
If this team is going to make the playoffs, they have to get in that mentality and get some actual win streaks put together.
Brian39
Registered User
- Apr 24, 2014
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I agree with the assessment about the massive hill to climb, but I disagree about the certainty of 'doneness.'
In Calgary, I see a team that is being dragged to mediocrity by a rookie goalie who is playing like a top 10 starter. They suck whenever Vladar is in net (6-10-5) and Wolf would be far from the first rookie goalie to hit a wall late in their rookie season. A 2 week injury or cold streak from their rookie goalie could very well end their season. What happens if they get an offer too good to refuse on Andersson? Or if Colorado looks at the 2C issue they have had since letting Kadri walk and makes an offer to get Kadri back?
I absolutely wouldn't bet even money on Calgary having a massive collapse, but I also wouldn't need 100 to 1 odds. I see a very flawed roster getting better results than they 'should' on the back of a rookie goalie. They have the 3rd most loser points in the league. I just wouldn't be all that surprised to see them hit a 2-7-1 skid at some point. Teams like that do it all the time.
Again, I wouldn't bet even money on it, but I don't see it as outside the realm of possibility.
Blues acquire 5th-round pick from NY Islanders for Perunovich | St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong announced today the team has acquired a conditional fifth round draft pick in 2026 from the New York Islanders in exchange for defenseman Scott Perunovich. Perunovich, 26, was originally drafted by the Blues in the...
www.nhl.com
Blues traded Perunovich for a 5th
About time. Peru experiment should have ended 2 years ago. Good riddance. Hopefully that means Leddy is ready or they are bringing Kessel back up.Blues acquire 5th-round pick from NY Islanders for Perunovich | St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong announced today the team has acquired a conditional fifth round draft pick in 2026 from the New York Islanders in exchange for defenseman Scott Perunovich. Perunovich, 26, was originally drafted by the Blues in the...
Blues traded Perunovich for a 5th
PocketNines
Cutter's Way
The Blues have spent the entire 24-25 season ranging between +2 at best and -3 at worst. They have no three game winning streaks.
Calgary at +8 then +7 after yesterday thus feels done to me in a situation where they just can't get above +2
bleedblue1223
Registered User
- Jan 21, 2011
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Wonder if Perunovich's move means Leddy is nearing a return or if it was just a situation where we finally found a team willing to trade for Perunovich and we'll just call someone else up.
PocketNines
Cutter's Way
Isles adding DeAngelo definitely an indication of desperation. And a super short term fix before he's out of there.
So it's probably the Blues finally finding a taker, for anything. Armstrong has bent over backwards to give him every opportunity and this feels like a favor trade to the player.
Brian39
Registered User
- Apr 24, 2014
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The Blues are +3 under Monty and have been as high as +5 under him (multiple times). Since he took over, their record under him has bounced between +2 at the lowest and +5 at the highest. The inability to get past +2 is based much more on the hole when Monty took over than their play since.
I get what you are saying about the hill to climb, but that doesn't do anything to convince me that Calgary can't have a backslide or that the Blues can't slightly improve. I wouldn't bet on everything going right with even money, but I don't think the gap is so unsurmountable that it is impossible. They are getting close and need to win games ASAP, but I wouldn't say done for sure.
