Prospect Info: 2024 Blues Prospect Poll #4

[STL fan in MN]

Lindstein running away with Poll 3 so going to call it early. Poll 4 could be a lot tighter.

1. Dalibor Dvorsky (89.8%)
2. Jimmy Snuggerud (48.8%)
3. Theo Lindstein (73.1%)
4. ?

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[kimzey59]

Tough one, here.
Pretty good arguments for any of Bolduc, Jiricek and Stenberg.

I'm going with Bolduc simply because of NHL readiness.

 

[Meatwagon]

Bolduc
Stenberg
Jirichek

 

[Memento]

Stenberg, then Bolduc, then Jiricek.

Fair or not, Jiricek was injured most of last year. I can’t rank him above Stenberg or Bolduc.

Then you have Bolduc and Stenberg. Bolduc could legitimately get forty goals in an NHL season, given power play time and the right circumstances. But Stenberg plays center and wing, does everything right, is a beastly forechecker, could pot twenty-five goals/sixty-five points consistently, and play PK and powerplay.

Gun to my head, I go Stenberg, but it’s very close.

 

[Blanick]

I understand the hesitation on Jiricek but I I voted for him simply because I believe he has the highest ceiling. When doing these rankings I always vote for talent ceiling over nhl readiness. Jiricek definitely has more question marks with his injuries but in my opinion if all three of Jiricek, Stenberg and Bolduc hit their ceiling I feel like he would be most impactful.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Bolduc showed me last year that he’s taken steps to improve his overall game along with the tool kit he was blessed with. While Stenberg is also an excellent prospect, I have to give Bolduc the edge proving himself at higher professional levels. Jiricek is a slot below these 2 as he has a lot to prove at a better level.

 

[Mike Liut]

I think Jiricek has the highest ceiling, and Stenberg has the highest floor, and Bolduc has already shown he can play in the nhl at a good level. This is a tough choice.

 

[Eldon Reid]

Stenberg, then Bolduc, then Jiricek.

Fair or not, Jiricek was injured most of last year. I can’t rank him above Stenberg or Bolduc.

Then you have Bolduc and Stenberg. Bolduc could legitimately get forty goals in an NHL season, given power play time and the right circumstances. But Stenberg plays center and wing, does everything right, is a beastly forechecker, could pot twenty-five goals/sixty-five points consistently, and play PK and powerplay.

Gun to my head, I go Stenberg, but it’s very close.

This was my logic. I agree that I think Jiricek has higher ceiling than both I feel, but losing lot of time to develop this year will put him down lower. If Jiricek has really good season next year, he may just jump into my top 3.

 

[LGB]

I'll take Jiricek here. I don't think he carries all that much risk. ACL injuries are very common in modern pro athletes and I fully expect him to recover 100%. He has good size, a high skill level, and high compete.

 

[ExtremeColdWeather]

High hopes for Jiricek

 

[Linkens Mastery]

The next three could be any combo of Jiricek, Bolduc, and Stenberg, I went Stenberg but all of them are real close.

 

[STL fan in MN]

I see essentially a 3 way tie here and the voting so far reflects that.

I’m going with Jiricek. Because of his injury, he’s a bit of an unknown and missed some development time but if he hits, he has the highest potential IMO. And we really need d-men so as an asset, he’s more valuable than 2 guys that project to be LWs.

 

[ezcreepin]

I went Bolduc here and I fully accept that it's because of knowledge and recency bias. He may have a lower ceiling that Jiricek and may not lead or be as big of a nuisance compared to Stenberg, but to me he has a higher ceiling than Stenberg and is more likely to hit it compared to Jiricek. What I saw this past season from him was very impressive and my hope is that he can continue that good play into this year and show the kind of offense he can create. My ranking could change next year but this is just where I'm at right now.

The fact that we mostly agree that this could go between 3 players says a lot about where our farm is at. Having someone like Bolduc, Jiricek, or Stenberg alone would've been exciting 7 years ago, but we've got them plus more.

 

[MissouriMook]

To me, the fact that we could conceivably have our most recent first round pick rated as our 6th best prospect says a lot about the quality and depth of our prospect pool. This team should have a wealth of cheap talent in 5 years, even if they don’t all pan out. That is the perfect recipe to go out and grab some proven talent at that time for the chance to make some serious deep playoff runs.

 

[Frenzy31]

This is a very tough one. I went with Bolduc. I did this for a couple of reasons. I think he has the highest ceiling and he is also closer to reaching it. He played a solid game last year, by keeping things simple - but he did offer some glimpses of true skill. Our fears going into the season was he would be a player that floated, but last year he showed him gritt and went to the hard places on the ice (corners, front of the net).

I have him higher then Snuggs at this point. I get everyone going with Jiricek or Stens also.

I have all three on the same tier, but Bolduc is in the NHL.

To me:

Tier 1
Lindstein (Top pairing D, or number 3 floor)
Dvo (1 b Center - ceiling 2 C floor

Tier 2
Bolduc (Top line winger - top 6 forward)
Jiricek (Top pairing d - 3rd pairing floor)
Snuggs (2nd line winger - top 9 forward - can score any kind of goal)
Stens (2nd line winger - Middle 6 forward - can play on any line)

 

[SirPaste]

I think Jiricek has the highest ceiling, and Stenberg has the highest floor, and Bolduc has already shown he can play in the nhl at a good level. This is a tough choice.

Yea I agree with this. I could make a case for any of those 3 guys here, they are all so close IMO. I would be fine with them in any order really, I did go with Jiricek though as I feel if he can become a top pairing dman that is just so much more valuable.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

Went with Jiricek. He has the highest ceiling at a position of very high value. I know the injury happened, but he was viewed as a top 10 pick before that.

I believe him and Theo will be 2 mainstays in our top 4 for a very long time.

 

[BadgersandBlues]

I'd like to push back on the Snuggerud claims from last post a bit, I didn't notice them until today and that thread closed.

Snuggy has shown to be a dominant force when playing with talented players. Yes, his second season in college wasn't the best, but he had a monster World Juniors. Maybe he's not a line driver on his own, but with his shot, he doesn't need to be. That's not his game. His game is putting the puck in the net from the left circle on the PP and from anywhere on the ice at 5v5. He is one of the few players (Much like Tarasenko in his prime) that can simply score a goal at anytime from anywhere, and that's extremely hard to find. I think his ceiling is Phil Kessel light, a guy who scores 30ish goals a year pretty consistently. Perhaps he doesn't have the vision that Kessel does, but Kessel found ways to score anytime he was playing with dudes who could get him the puck. I think we need more distributors on this team, but that's not Snuggy's fault if we don't give him some at least Tyler Bozak level talent to play with.

 

[ezcreepin]

This is a very tough one. I went with Bolduc. I did this for a couple of reasons. I think he has the highest ceiling and he is also closer to reaching it. He played a solid game last year, by keeping things simple - but he did offer some glimpses of true skill. Our fears going into the season was he would be a player that floated, but last year he showed him gritt and went to the hard places on the ice (corners, front of the net).

I have him higher then Snuggs at this point. I get everyone going with Jiricek or Stens also.

I have all three on the same tier, but Bolduc is in the NHL.

To me:

Tier 1
Lindstein (Top pairing D, or number 3 floor)
Dvo (1 b Center - ceiling 2 C floor

Tier 2
Bolduc (Top line winger - top 6 forward)
Jiricek (Top pairing d - 3rd pairing floor)
Snuggs (2nd line winger - top 9 forward - can score any kind of goal)
Stens (2nd line winger - Middle 6 forward - can play on any line)

I think I agree with basically everything you've said here besides the ceiling for Dvorsky. Personally, he gives me Kopitar vibes with maybe more offense and less defense than what Kopitar came in with. I think he has more potential to be a goal scorer, but like Vladi, he is also a great passer as well. Kopitar came in with raving reviews, so it's hard to say where Dvorsky lines up, but they seem like similar players. I have a hard time pinpointing Bolduc's floor, but if you pushed me I think I would say top 6 because I believe he has the attitude to be a top 6 forward. I just don't know how much of his offense will translate over his career.

 

[ezcreepin]

I'd like to push back on the Snuggerud claims from last post a bit, I didn't notice them until today and that thread closed.

Snuggy has shown to be a dominant force when playing with talented players. Yes, his second season in college wasn't the best, but he had a monster World Juniors. Maybe he's not a line driver on his own, but with his shot, he doesn't need to be. That's not his game. His game is putting the puck in the net from the left circle on the PP and from anywhere on the ice at 5v5. He is one of the few players (Much like Tarasenko in his prime) that can simply score a goal at anytime from anywhere, and that's extremely hard to find. I think his ceiling is Phil Kessel light, a guy who scores 30ish goals a year pretty consistently. Perhaps he doesn't have the vision that Kessel does, but Kessel found ways to score anytime he was playing with dudes who could get him the puck. I think we need more distributors on this team, but that's not Snuggy's fault if we don't give him some at least Tyler Bozak level talent to play with.

I agreed with Frenzy on Snuggerud's potential, but I think that might be because he's not necessarily a driver of offense. I believe that he could have a 40 goal season just by watching him score goals in college, but over his career he may sit between 25-35 goals. It's hard to pinpoint, but he plays a solid game and hounds the puck, so I think he could be a 60-70 point player provided he has the linemates that can finish off his passes. He's not bad at passing at all, but much like Vladi, he's going to take the shot if he has an opening. I'm going to wait before I'm bullish on his potential, but I don't know if he has the ability to just take over a game like prime Tarasenko did.

 

[BadgersandBlues]

I agreed with Frenzy on Snuggerud's potential, but I think that might be because he's not necessarily a driver of offense. I believe that he could have a 40 goal season just by watching him score goals in college, but over his career he may sit between 25-35 goals. It's hard to pinpoint, but he plays a solid game and hounds the puck, so I think he could be a 60-70 point player provided he has the linemates that can finish off his passes. He's not bad at passing at all, but much like Vladi, he's going to take the shot if he has an opening. I'm going to wait before I'm bullish on his potential, but I don't know if he has the ability to just take over a game like prime Tarasenko did.

Did Tarasenko really ever "take over a game"? I wouldn't say that he did. Tarasenko CHANGED a game in a snap of the wrist, but he wasn't a guy who was constantly creating chances or driving offense. He was the guy when we were down a goal would sometimes go POP and we'd be tied, and sometimes he'd lose the puck in the corner while trying to shield it.

 

[ezcreepin]

Did Tarasenko really ever "take over a game"? I wouldn't say that he did. Tarasenko CHANGED a game in a snap of the wrist, but he wasn't a guy who was constantly creating chances or driving offense. He was the guy when we were down a goal would sometimes go POP and we'd be tied, and sometimes he'd lose the puck in the corner while trying to shield it.

In his prime? Yea, he absolutely could take over a game. It doesn't have to be a binary where he's dominating the entire game or he's not. We know Tarasenko was a floater or cheated a bit too often, but he absolutely could score when he wanted in the mid 2010s. I think we're forgetting just how good prime Vova was.

 

[MissouriMook]

I'd like to push back on the Snuggerud claims from last post a bit, I didn't notice them until today and that thread closed.

Snuggy has shown to be a dominant force when playing with talented players. Yes, his second season in college wasn't the best, but he had a monster World Juniors. Maybe he's not a line driver on his own, but with his shot, he doesn't need to be. That's not his game. His game is putting the puck in the net from the left circle on the PP and from anywhere on the ice at 5v5. He is one of the few players (Much like Tarasenko in his prime) that can simply score a goal at anytime from anywhere, and that's extremely hard to find. I think his ceiling is Phil Kessel light, a guy who scores 30ish goals a year pretty consistently. Perhaps he doesn't have the vision that Kessel does, but Kessel found ways to score anytime he was playing with dudes who could get him the puck. I think we need more distributors on this team, but that's not Snuggy's fault if we don't give him some at least Tyler Bozak level talent to play with.

To your point, there have been plenty of players, even some HOF-ers, who fit his profile. Guys like Bobby Hull, Phil Esposito, Mike Bossy, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, Dave Andreychuk, and Alex Ovechkin come to mind. Like you, I feel there is some push-back due to the idea that just because you're not a "play driver" that your value is somehow diminished. There is tremendous value in having guys who can finish the plays that the "play drivers" are driving, especially if they can score from just about anywhere in the O-zone without benefit of being set up for a play.

 

[BadgersandBlues]

In his prime? Yea, he absolutely could take over a game. It doesn't have to be a binary where he's dominating the entire game or he's not. We know Tarasenko was a floater or cheated a bit too often, but he absolutely could score when he wanted in the mid 2010s. I think we're forgetting just how good prime Vova was.

I'm not, I simply take exception to this idea that he, "Took over a game." To me that's someone who's controlling the play and generating chances for himself or his teammates. Tarasenko wasn't that guy. He was the drive in on the wing and snap a wrister out of nowhere that shocks the goalie as it whizzes by his ear. That's not taking over a game imo, it's a singular talent that barely anyone has and could happen from anytime and anywhere.

I liken it to a Devin Hester in football. The dude didn't take over a game, but man when he got the ball something special could always happen.

 

[bleedblue1223]

And to points I made on the main boards, producing less assists when playing with less talent should not be viewed as a negative for a goal-scorer. He scored goals at same rate with significantly less talent. I think it's fair to say that maybe some overhyped him based on what he did with Cooley and Knies, and they were thinking he's going to be this 80+ point complete winger, stud, but that's not his fault. Last season didn't discourage me at all on him, to me he still projects as the same 30ish goal scorer that he did after his freshman season.

If last season he had higher assist totals and less goals, then I would've been more concerned. For this upcoming season, I think it's fair to say he should be taking the next step production wise, but as long as his goals are strong, I'm still confident in his future.