2024-2025 Blues Multi-Purpose Thread.

[SirPaste]

Idk if he's actually an upgrade over Tucker. If I'm being honest

I can't say I've seen him play much recently but I was wondering the same thing, they way he's bounced around not sure if he would actually be an upgrade on what we have already. But he is still youngish, making league minimum, what can it hurt to put in a claim if they like him, if he sucks back to waivers he goes, oh well

 

[LGB]

Let's be honest, Broberg has been kinda so-so lately as well. 5 points in 25 games since his injury. Sucks that he had to get hurt when he had such a hot start.

I agree his play was down for a little while after coming back from the injury. Lately though I've been very happy with his play. The early season pace was never sustainable. His 5v5 scoring rate is good for a defenseman. Can't expect a lot of production without PP time.

 

[Reality Czech]

I can't say I've seen him play much recently but I was wondering the same thing, they way he's bounced around not sure if he would actually be an upgrade on what we have already. But he is still youngish, making league minimum, what can it hurt to put in a claim if they like him, if he sucks back to waivers he goes, oh well

I doubt they would do Tucker dirty like that since he's been playing well lately, but having more RHD options isn't a bad thing.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Let's be honest, Broberg has been kinda so-so lately as well. 5 points in 25 games since his injury. Sucks that he had to get hurt when he had such a hot start.

I agree. The hot start was exactly that; hot. He’s still doing well. This is his first real NHL season. I have a deep well of patience for Broberg.

 

[MissouriMook]

I doubt they would do Tucker dirty like that since he's been playing well lately, but having more RHD options isn't a bad thing.

Not to mention that Tucker himself would have to clear waivers if he was the roster casualty. He’s been on the active roster more than 30 days since his recall right before Christmas.

 

[Reality Czech]

Not to mention that Tucker himself would have to clear waivers if he was the roster casualty. He’s been on the active roster more than 30 days since his recall right before Christmas.

Yeah, they wouldn't do that either. If Leddy is coming back, then we don't really have the space to add a d-man.

Though it is a shame we'll never get to see a Bro-Bo pairing.

 

[Xerloris]

Adam Boqvist on waivers. Here's a guy I wouldn't mind claiming. Right age, upgrade over Tucker at 3RD, righthand shot, cheap contract. Gives Army another chance to brag about the number of 1st round picks we have in our roster.

I thought Tucker has been pretty good since his recall.

 

[BlueDream]

I doubt they would do Tucker dirty like that since he's been playing well lately, but having more RHD options isn't a bad thing.

If they want another RHD they could just call Kessel back up. Really no point in claiming a worthless player on waivers.

I’m not convinced Kessel will ever be good, but I’m sure he will get another shot at some point. He appears to be playing well in the AHL since getting sent down, or at least playing more aggressive offensively. 11 points in 17 games, by far the highest rate of production he’s had in pro hockey.

Something may have clicked for Tucker, who looks solid. Maybe it will happen for Kessel too.

 

[Reality Czech]

Obviously it's too early to make the call on Perunovich, but if he does well for the Islanders I'm going to be pretty annoyed. If Saad does well for his new team as well then we'll need to ask the question why the Blues aren't getting the most out of our players.

If I have one criticism of Army, it's his obsession with acquiring mediocre depth players. Depth can obviously be a good thing, but too much of it takes opportunities away from young players who may not get a chance to show their true potential.

For example, did we really need either Joseph brother? I don't think Kapanen is that bad but we don't need 6 4th liners on the team. I actually like Faksa and would be interested in extending him but he kind of made Sundqvist unneeded or vice versa. Then again, if Joshua had gotten more playing time he could be filling the 3C or 4C role right now. Or why pay to get rid of Hayes, only to bring in other guys that are basically no better than Hayes? Suter has been better than expected but with the addition of Broberg, I don't really know if we needed him either.

I respect the desire to compete, but I also don't see the point of investing in and developing these young players if we're just gonna bring in cheap vets every year to take their roster spots.

 

[Stealth JD]

As I’m now rooting for the Blues to get the best possible draft pick, I absolutely LOVE seeing Texier on the top-line. Hope he gets 24-minutes of action per night and completely neuters the offensive attack.

If the Blues could pull a Buffalo and lose 12 of 15 (and the upcoming schedule makes that look do-able) they may get into top-5 draft-position. But Monty is going to absolutely have to embrace playing guys like Sunny and Faulk on the PP, Texier on the first line with a healthy dose of Toropchenko and Saad Walker.

 

[Majorityof1]

Obviously it's too early to make the call on Perunovich, but if he does well for the Islanders I'm going to be pretty annoyed. If Saad does well for his new team as well then we'll need to ask the question why the Blues aren't getting the most out of our players.

If I have one criticism of Army, it's his obsession with acquiring mediocre depth players. Depth can obviously be a good thing, but too much of it takes opportunities away from young players who may not get a chance to show their true potential.

For example, did we really need either Joseph brother? I don't think Kapanen is that bad but we don't need 6 4th liners on the team. I actually like Faksa and would be interested in extending him but he kind of made Sundqvist unneeded or vice versa. Then again, if Joshua had gotten more playing time he could be filling the 3C or 4C role right now. Or why pay to get rid of Hayes, only to bring in other guys that are basically no better than Hayes? Suter has been better than expected but with the addition of Broberg, I don't really know if we needed him either.

I respect the desire to compete, but I also don't see the point of investing in and developing these young players if we're just gonna bring in cheap vets every year to take their roster spots.

Haven't you wanted to send Bolduc to the AHLall year? Not trying to hate. Generally curious, as we have a lot if posters and I could bevconflating viewpoints. Thus seems vastly different. Who is playing more if we don't bring in Joseph and Sunqvist and Bolduc is in the AHL?

 

[LGB]

If they want another RHD they could just call Kessel back up. Really no point in claiming a worthless player on waivers.

I’m not convinced Kessel will ever be good, but I’m sure he will get another shot at some point. He appears to be playing well in the AHL since getting sent down, or at least playing more aggressive offensively. 11 points in 17 games, by far the highest rate of production he’s had in pro hockey.

Something may have clicked for Tucker, who looks solid. Maybe it will happen for Kessel too.

I think we’ll see Kessel back when Suter gets moved. I think Kessel will be a quality NHL D if he can improve his rush defense. He has size, mobility, and adequate puck skills. Once we have nothing to lose later in the year I’d try him with Broberg and just see what happens.

 

[Mike Liut]

Off topic…

I’m not convinced the 2026 Blues will be any better than the 2025 Blues. I don’t think we start our ascend and playoff push until 2027.

I just hope we keep sucking for a top 6-8 pick this year.

 

[bleedblue1223]

For next season, feel like it kind of depends on the younger players. And I guess we don't know how we'll use our new cap space. If Snuggerud or Dvorsky have an instant impact or Bolduc breaks out, then we could certainly see our offense boost us up a level. Lots of ifs though.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Obviously it's too early to make the call on Perunovich, but if he does well for the Islanders I'm going to be pretty annoyed. If Saad does well for his new team as well then we'll need to ask the question why the Blues aren't getting the most out of our players.

If I have one criticism of Army, it's his obsession with acquiring mediocre depth players. Depth can obviously be a good thing, but too much of it takes opportunities away from young players who may not get a chance to show their true potential.

For example, did we really need either Joseph brother? I don't think Kapanen is that bad but we don't need 6 4th liners on the team. I actually like Faksa and would be interested in extending him but he kind of made Sundqvist unneeded or vice versa. Then again, if Joshua had gotten more playing time he could be filling the 3C or 4C role right now. Or why pay to get rid of Hayes, only to bring in other guys that are basically no better than Hayes? Suter has been better than expected but with the addition of Broberg, I don't really know if we needed him either.

I respect the desire to compete, but I also don't see the point of investing in and developing these young players if we're just gonna bring in cheap vets every year to take their roster spots.

Counterpoint, it’s better for young players to have to earn their way into the lineup. If they’re not good enough to beat out mediocre depth players, maybe they were over rated to start with. The veteran depth pieces Armstrong signs are painless contracts that are easy to trade, bury or otherwise dispose of when they’re not needed. This season is a prime example, where he’s moved on from multiple guys who were depth placeholders.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

From some of Armstrong’s comments, I gather Texier has an opportunity now to seize a place in the assembling core. In contrast to some of the potpourri of temporary depth veterans, he’s trying to figure out if Texier has upside worth keeping. It’s something worth watching during the end of the season.

 

[Reality Czech]

Counterpoint, it’s better for young players to have to earn their way into the lineup. If they’re not good enough to beat out mediocre depth players, maybe they were over rated to start with. The veteran depth pieces Armstrong signs are painless contracts that are easy to trade, bury or otherwise dispose of when they’re not needed. This season is a prime example, where he’s moved on from multiple guys who were depth placeholders.

It's a fine line and the coach's discretion is a factor as well. I thought Perunovich did enough to earn more playing time earlier this season. He was finally healthy and seemed to be figuring things out when he was permanently banished to the press box. Saad averaged 2 minutes more per game than Bolduc did despite being a shadow most games.

But then Tucker for whatever reason has a few good games and he's now a fixture in the lineup. Hard to figure out why some guys earn their playing time while others don't.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

From some of Armstrong’s comments, I gather Texier has an opportunity now to seize a place in the assembling core. In contrast to some of the potpourri of temporary depth veterans, he’s trying to figure out if Texier has upside worth keeping. It’s something worth watching during the end of the season.

They'll give him one game. If he doesn't score a goal he's back to line 3 or out of the lineup completely the following game.

 

[Xerloris]

They'll give him one game. If he doesn't score a goal he's back to line 3 or out of the lineup completely the following game.

That's only for Scotty P and Bolduc

 

[BadgersandBlues]

Counterpoint, it’s better for young players to have to earn their way into the lineup. If they’re not good enough to beat out mediocre depth players, maybe they were over rated to start with. The veteran depth pieces Armstrong signs are painless contracts that are easy to trade, bury or otherwise dispose of when they’re not needed. This season is a prime example, where he’s moved on from multiple guys who were depth placeholders.

I don't disagree with this premise. The issue is that every coach favors veterans over young guys to CYA. Bolduc is a great example of this. Bolduc has clearly been at worst the 7th best forward on this team (Thomas, Kyrou, Holloway, Buch, and Schenn are hands-down better. I personally think Bolduc has played better then Neighbors, but it's not a fight I want to get bogged down in, so I'll say Bolduc has played 7th best of all our forwards). Yet he keeps getting scratched over Walker, Toro, Joseph, Texier, and Saad. Not a single one of those players should be in the lineup over Bolduc all else being equal. Faksa and Sunny are Centers, so that's fine, but he's been better then them too. Bolduc has shown that he's not afraid to play physical, or get in on the forecheck, or even block shots. He's rated out defensively better then all the guys mentioned above, and brings way WAY more offense to the table (Outside of Neighbors). Yet he's been scratched multiple times over many of these players. Why hasn't Toro been shown the pressbox? He's been mediocre at best all year. Bolduc can replace him on the 4th line no problem. Sunny and Joseph grade out very similiarly to Faksa offensively, so it's not like playing on the 4th line is going to stunt Bolduc's offense, we're doing that to him already by forcing him to play with Sunny/Joseph. I mean hell, Army basically admitted that he dumped Saad to the AHL to force Monty to play Texier.

It's a quaint idea that young players should have to "beat out the vets" for their spots, but honestly it never works out that way. If you give coaches veteran players, they are going to play those veteran players over young kids b/c it's a CYA risk reduction. If Sunny goes out and f***s up, the coach can shrug and be like, he's a 400 game vet, he's a Cup winner, he should know better, blah blah blah. If a young kid f***s up, then the coach has to actually show that he's, ya know, coaching when he answers the question. He has to address why the kid messed up and the steps that the staff is taking to fix the issue. That's way more work, so 99.9% of coaches just play the vets.

 

[Celtic Note]

I don't disagree with this premise. The issue is that every coach favors veterans over young guys to CYA. Bolduc is a great example of this. Bolduc has clearly been at worst the 7th best forward on this team (Thomas, Kyrou, Holloway, Buch, and Schenn are hands-down better. I personally think Bolduc has played better then Neighbors, but it's not a fight I want to get bogged down in, so I'll say Bolduc has played 7th best of all our forwards). Yet he keeps getting scratched over Walker, Toro, Joseph, Texier, and Saad. Not a single one of those players should be in the lineup over Bolduc all else being equal. Faksa and Sunny are Centers, so that's fine, but he's been better then them too. Bolduc has shown that he's not afraid to play physical, or get in on the forecheck, or even block shots. He's rated out defensively better then all the guys mentioned above, and brings way WAY more offense to the table (Outside of Neighbors). Yet he's been scratched multiple times over many of these players. Why hasn't Toro been shown the pressbox? He's been mediocre at best all year. Bolduc can replace him on the 4th line no problem. Sunny and Joseph grade out very similiarly to Faksa offensively, so it's not like playing on the 4th line is going to stunt Bolduc's offense, we're doing that to him already by forcing him to play with Sunny/Joseph. I mean hell, Army basically admitted that he dumped Saad to the AHL to force Monty to play Texier.

It's a quaint idea that young players should have to "beat out the vets" for their spots, but honestly it never works out that way. If you give coaches veteran players, they are going to play those veteran players over young kids b/c it's a CYA risk reduction. If Sunny goes out and f***s up, the coach can shrug and be like, he's a 400 game vet, he's a Cup winner, he should know better, blah blah blah. If a young kid f***s up, then the coach has to actually show that he's, ya know, coaching when he answers the question. He has to address why the kid messed up and the steps that the staff is taking to fix the issue. That's way more work, so 99.9% of coaches just play the vets.

The strategy with Bolduc seems to be absent. He has been a yo-yo. Up and down the lineup. In and out of the line up. There seems to be no consistency for him to acclimate to.

I have seen a lot of double standards this year across both coaches.

Hofer is really the same, but to a touch lesser of an extent.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

The strategy with Bolduc seems to be absent. He has been a yo-yo. Up and down the lineup. In and out of the line up. There seems to be no consistency for him to acclimate to.

I have seen a lot of double standards this year across both coaches.

Hofer is really the same, but to a touch lesser of an extent.

Makes one wonder what it is they want from him that he isn't doing. It feels like he needs to be more offensively assertive, but can be hard to do that if you don't feel confidence of coaching staff.

 

[Majorityof1]

Makes one wonder what it is they want from him that he isn't doing. It feels like he needs to be more offensively assertive, but can be hard to do that if you don't feel confidence of coaching staff.

And when you have Oscar "He's only 30 but plays like 60" Sunqvist as your C, it's hard to be offensively assertive.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

For next season, feel like it kind of depends on the younger players. And I guess we don't know how we'll use our new cap space. If Snuggerud or Dvorsky have an instant impact or Bolduc breaks out, then we could certainly see our offense boost us up a level. Lots of ifs though.

Also heavily depends on if our goalies can turn it around.

 

[stl76]

Bolduc needs to manage the puck better in high leverage situations. It’s part of acclimating to the NHL, and I have zero doubt he will given his IQ and work ethic. That’s what I see with him anyway.

Other than that, I see TONS of upside for Bolduc. I see his name thrown around by Blues fans here as a throw in for trades and I think that would be a big mistake. He has the tools to be a very valuable player.