Prospect Info: Blues 2023-2024 Prospect Thread

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Nice to see them picking it up. Hopefully Dean gets going now that he's got the monkey off his back.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

Dean knows you're not allowed to shoot on 2on1s in the Blue Note right?

Love the confidence to take the shot himself though

 

[Frenzy31]

Dean with a goal
Bolduc with a goal
Dvorski with 1g, 3a
Buchinger 1g, 1a

 

[542365]

Snuggy 5 and a game misconduct. Has been cold lately. Really hope he gets going soon.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Snuggy 5 and a game misconduct. Has been cold lately. Really hope he gets going soon.

looked like a rather weak call to me.

 

[542365]

Another Dvorsky goal right in front of the net. And an assist to go along with it. His 1.47 points per game puts him 7th in the OHL in his first full season NA ice. Pretty impressive.

 

[Antiillafire]

11 points in last 5 games for Dvorsky. The production is impressive given how truly awful their PP is, last in the league at 7%. He is producing entirely at even strength, if Sudbury’s Pp was even just average you could add 5-6 points to his total now, if it was dynamic add 8-9 points.

 

[Frenzy31]

11 points in last 5 games for Dvorsky. The production is impressive given how truly awful their PP is, last in the league at 7%. He is producing entirely at even strength, if Sudbury’s Pp was even just average you could add 5-6 points to his total now, if it was dynamic add 8-9 points.

Would like to see them trade for Buchinger. The storm are not very strong this year.

 

[Evgeny Oliker]

How had Alexandrov looked so far in NhL? What’s his upside?

 

[STL fan in MN]

How had Alexandrov looked so far in NhL? What’s his upside?

Well, he’s played a grand total of 38 minutes over 5 games this season. 2 shots on goal. I’ve barely noticed him.

I’d guess he’ll end up a decent 4C. Maybe 3C or maybe a guy that bounces in and out of the lineup a few years and then is either a minor leaguer or back to Europe. It’s hard to get a better read on him than that with so little ice time.

 

[Frenzy31]

How had Alexandrov looked so far in NhL? What’s his upside?

Unfortunately, he is fighting with Neighbors for a starting roster spot and lost. Our bottom 6 is set and that is what he is ideal for playing. He really needs to show us more to determine, but I don't see him breaking our bottom 6 so....

 

[STL fan in MN]

Would like to see them trade for Buchinger. The storm are not very strong this year.

Neither are the Wolves. The Storm currently have 4 more points than the Wolves but I would be surprised if either traded away assets to take a run this season.

If it’s looking like Dvorsky won’t be back in the OHL next season, I would expect them to trade him at the deadline.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Well, he’s played a grand total of 38 minutes over 5 games this season. 2 shots on goal. I’ve barely noticed him.

I’d guess he’ll end up a decent 4C. Maybe 3C or maybe a guy that bounces in and out of the lineup a few years and then is either a minor leaguer or back to Europe. It’s hard to get a better read on him than that with so little ice time.

i think you are overly generous. alexandrov is unlikely to reach those heights. maybe he holds on to a 4th line role, but he has given little indication he is legit center and not shown anything in nhl to suggest he can make 3rd line. maybe he has more to give, but he looks like a guy that will be back in Europe sooner than later.

 

[STL fan in MN]

i think you are overly generous. alexandrov is unlikely to reach those heights. maybe he holds on to a 4th line role, but he has given little indication he is legit center and not shown anything in nhl to suggest he can make 3rd line. maybe he has more to give, but he looks like a guy that will be back in Europe sooner than later.

I’m hoping this isn’t his peak and he has another gear. But that’s simply hoping he improves because he’s 23 and theoretically he should be a bit better by age 25. But I see the same as you - a guy currently lucky to be in the NHL.

I personally would be fine if they exposed him to waivers. He’d be better off playing big minutes in the AHL IMO. Bring up Gaudette.

 

[Brian39]

i think about this a lot. how does army make us relevant again with staying power without a couple of top 5 picks? personally i think we need a couple of future stars to get there. hopefully Dvorsky is 1. i’m willing to suck a couple years to hopefully get them. Look at Vancouver and LA and some others. fun to watch with all that skill. thanks

Some of the steps are already completed from a talent acquisition standpoint.

Step 1: The Robert Thomas we've seen so far this year needs to be a breakout to what he actually is and not simply a hot streak. He's on pace for 90 points and is playing well in all 3 zones. He is 3rd in the NHL in even strength points and is shooting way more. If this is who he is, he is a Cup caliber 1C locked in at $8.125M through 2031. That is an incredible starting point on the path back to relevancy and if this is who he is, then he is a genuine star. Not a super star, but a star.

Step 2: Dvorsky needs to eventually hit as a legit (or hopefully high end) 2C. He was the 10th overall pick in a very highly regarded draft. If you are going to get back to contender status without a couple top 5 picks, you can't miss with that pick. He doesn't need to be a superstar if this season's version of Thomas is real, but he can't just be a competent NHLer. If we're doing this without top 5 picks, we need Thomas and Dvorsky to be a truly good 1-2 punch at center.

Step 3: Parayko's body allows him to provide quality minutes into his mid-30s. We need him to be able to provide 21+ good minutes a night 2-3 years down the line (his age 32 and 33 seasons) and 19+ good minutes a night 4-5 years down the line (his age 34 and 35 seasons). He can be overpaid by then (although I'd wager $6.5M won't be top pair money by the late 2020s), but he needs to still be good in a lesser role.

These are the 3 things that I think basically have to happen for this team to get back to contender status without either getting a top 5 pick(s) or undergoing a long stretch of bad seasons (albeit without top 5 picks). I don't see the retool being successful without those 3 things being true.

Several of these following things have to go right, but some of them can fail to work out.

Step 4: Kyrou remains in the organization and settles in as a 70+ point guy with adequate defense or an 80+ point guy with poor defense. If he is one of those players, he can genuinely contribute in our appropriate window with his contract.

Step 4b: Or, Kyrou could also contribute to our window if he is traded in the next 18 months before his NTC kicks in and returns us a legitimate top pair D man of roughly the same age (or younger).

Step 5: Buch is extended and is a top line (to eventually "just" top 6) player for the first 4 years of his new contract (through his age 33 season).

Step 5b: Or, Buch is traded for a haul of futures or a single very high quality future asset.

Step 6: We pick the right one (or maybe even two) of Binner/Hofer/Zherenko and the result of our decision gives the team quality goaltending.

Step 7: Two-to-four of Neighbours, Snuggy, Bolduc, Dean, Stenberg, Lindstein, and our 1st rounder in 2024 turn into genuine top half of the lineup NHL players as members of the Blues. One-to-three more provide serviceable depth for cheap RFA deals.

Step 8: We acquire a couple more picks/prospects at the deadline this year for guys who aren't in our long-term plans. We don't have the players to repeat last season's haul, but a couple more decent picks is doable.

Step 9: Krug and/or Faulk play well enough that they can either mentor/shelter D prospects in the last couple years of their contracts or can return some value in a trade between now and then.

Now, all of this gets us to the 10th and final step. Which is really more of a concept/necessity than a specific step.

Step 10: One of these steps needs to get us a #1 D man (or a couple legit top pair D men). It could be from step 4b or 5b in a blockbuster trade. It could be hitting on our 1st rounder this year in what is shaping up to be a very nice D heavy draft. Maybe we trade for a guy using surplus picks/prospects like the ROR and Schenn trades. Maybe it is a combination of these things to bring in multiple guys. But we need to acquire at least 1 D man from outside the current organization and we need to hit on that acquisition.

 

[jjniner]

Would love to trade JK for a good young D. Then give his money to Buch

 

[Frenzy31]

Would love to trade JK for a good young D. Then give his money to Buch

Buch will be 30 at his next contract. Do you really want to commit 8 million to a guy who will be on the down side of his career?

 

[jjniner]

Yes, if it means getting a good young D. Not saying use all on Buch, but frees up money. I like JK, just worry about his desperation to be a great player.

 

[Brian39]

Buch will be 30 at his next contract. Do you really want to commit 8 million to a guy who will be on the down side of his career?

Depends on the term. And I do think it is worth noting that he turns 30 before the next contract starts, but year 1 of that deal will squarely be his age 30 season. Not a massive distinction, but I do think that turning 30 in April before the contract is different than turning 31 a couple months after signing the deal.

$8M x 8 years that takes him through his age 37 season? Not terribly appealing to me.

$8M x 6 that takes him through his age 35 season? That's a number I can definitely get on board with in a league that is anticipating a $92M cap in year 1 of that deal. That is the same cap percentage that $7M was in 2021/22.

I'm pretty bullish on how Buch's game will age and I think that you're buying 3-4 years of a damn good player who is well worth an $8M AAV, followed by 1-2 years of a good player who is overpaid but still very much able to positively contribute in a middle 6 leadership role. I'm very content to pay that guy a near-market-rate deal to support and eventually compliment the next core.

 

[roseyc]

Toronto is looking for a offensive defenseman now that Klingburg is on LTIR. Why not package a group together possibly Kyrou/Krug to get Nylander

 

[Vladys Gumption]

Toronto is looking for an offensive defenseman now that Klingburg is on LTIR. Why not package a group together possibly Kyrou/Krug to get Nylander

Why on earth would they do that? They don’t have the cap to fit Krug alone, let alone him and Kyrou. And that’s ignoring the fact that Krug is signed for multiple years. They’re likely going to be looking for a short term solution, not taking someone else’s boat anchor.

 

[roseyc]

Why on earth would they do that? They don’t have the cap to fit Krug alone, let alone him and Kyrou. And that’s ignoring the fact that Krug is signed for multiple years. They’re likely going to be looking for a short term solution, not taking someone else’s boat anchor.

Toronto hasn't always been the smartest organization. They're wanting to move Nylander. Krug hasn't been good but that's the going price for Defenceman. Kyrou needs a change of scenery hopefully that will do him good. Berube I'm sure is at his wit's end trying to coach him

 

[Frenzy31]

. Kyrou needs a change of scenery hopefully that will do him good. Berube I'm sure is at his wit's end trying to coach him

Commments like this drive me crazy. Kyrou, who is clearly working in improving his defensive game is, is a coaching issue?

It is ok to not like him as a player, but stop trying to creat an issue or make up a narative.

 

[STL fan in MN]

Commments like this drive me crazy. Kyrou, who is clearly working in improving his defensive game is, is a coaching issue?

It is ok to not like him as a player, but stop trying to creat an issue or make up a narative.

And Kyrou sucks. So we should trade him for Nylander, perhaps the highest value asset that might be available on the trade market. Toronto might just do it because they’re stupid. We’ll add boat anchor Torey Krug to even out the deal.

 

[Bobby Orrtuzzo]

And Kyrou sucks. So we should trade him for Nylander, perhaps the highest value asset that might be available on the trade market. Toronto might just do it because they’re stupid. We’ll add boat anchor Torey Krug to even out the deal.