I don't know that it says anything about Cole. There's three scenarios:
A) Cole in top 6, Redden 7th
B) Redden in top 6, Cole 7th
C) Redden in top 6, Woywitka 7th, Cole to Peoria
If it's A, they just want to have stronger defensive depth, and it doesn't say anything about Cole. Otherwise, yeah, it means that Cole hasn't impressed.
This summer was supposed to be another "huge" off-season for Cole (Dan O'Neil wrote a nice article on the topic after the season re: Cole's development and a possible partner for Petro) and heading into training camp he should've had a leg up on the competition by competing in the AHL (which Hitch said was the biggest advantage during the lockout).
And yet here we are with the Blues signing a 35+ defenseman and Cole likely heading back to the AHL where, if the Blues still believe in him long-term, it would be much better for him to get top 4 minutes with Peoria than your option B.
Hitch the other day said Cole cannot play against top players which means he's not ready for a top 4 role. They gave him another chance...the staff deems he's not ready. That, more than anything else, is what necessitated the Redden signing.
The problem with Cole is that he says all the right things but seems to be having a difficult time taking that next step in his development. When he's in the A, the report are that he's steady but not a guy who's a stud like a Brendan Smith (same draft class).
I like Cole, I do, I'm just wondering if the powers that be in the organization are losing faith in his long-term, top-4 potential.
He'll be 24 in a month.