Is it time to rebuild?
- Thread starter Spektre
- Start date
- Feb 12, 2008
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We need Kyrou, Thomas and Kostin to take big steps and be forces. If we let Schwartz, Hoffman and Bozak walk, trade Tarasenko and if Seattle takes Krug or Scandella, we’ll have tons of cap space. We are only a couple players away from being legit again. 1st line LW and top pairing LHD
We have a solid core and Sunny is coming back.
We have a solid core and Sunny is coming back.
Put together a realistic roster where you have a #1 LW, LHD and maybe a 2nd pairing LHD too
I don’t see how it’s possible. I think they will resign Schwartz and eat up 5-6 million.
Yes, but mostly because I am a firm believer that you need elite players to win and we are lacking them. That said, this organization isn’t going to do it now and will avoid doing it even at its most obvious point for as long as it can. If Armstrong makes the right moves this year he might be able to fool us for a season.
We won 2 years ago without any elite players but lots of really good ones.
LetsGoBooze
Let the re-tool breathe
- Jan 16, 2012
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I wonder if fantasy sports is to blame for the segment of fans always wanting to rush into a rebuild. Armchair GMs are always so concerned with the farm and young players with 'potential'. I for one think a healthy Blues team could compete with both the NYI and MTL, both of which made the conference finals. There is zero reason to give up on a competitive roster, when many of our core pieces are still in their prime. Sure, 2 years from now if we start to fade, blow it up. But with how our roster stands now, you gotta compete.
And I said at the time we were very lucky to win and I still believe that. Now take Pietro and Tarasenko out of the mix and you’re left with one player who is scratching the ‘elite’ tier as opposed to 3. Not to mention our core is on the wrong side of their career trajectories. Perhaps Armstrong can pull it off and give us another roster that can find lightning, but I’m not betting on it.
- Feb 12, 2008
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I guess I can see the fantasy sports angle but I don't play any.
The roster as it stands:
Kyrou ROR Perron
empty Thomas Schenn
Sanford Sundqvist Kostin
Clifford Barbashev Blais
Krug Parayko
Scandella Faulk
Walman Bortuzzo
Might lose Scandella and Dunn and probably 100% on Tarasenko. Let's say the Blues sign Schwartz, which I would expect, that doesn't inspire me. I really like Schenn but I would like him a lot more if the Blues had enough talent to push him to the 3rd line. I don't expect Kostin to come into the NHL and have some breakout year (if he makes the roster).
We'll see what Army does as there's a lot still up in the air. Barring some crazy overhaul of the top 9, and much needed help on D, I don't see it.
Thallis
No half measures
NYI would eviscerate us. We haven't seen them much recently, but that's a damn good hockey team with Trotz behind the bench. We might win a game or two against Montreal, but it's hard to see us beating Price reliably and their special teams absolutely dunk on ours. A team with a -xG is not built for the playoffs.
As for the thread, I think the answer is yes, but it won't happen. We don't have the elite players to carry us now, the young players to carry us in the short/mid term, or the prospects to build around for the future. We're just good enough to struggle for a playoff spot for years and either barely miss or get spanked in the first round. We might fill some holes that make us marginally better than last season, but the gap between last years team and a competitive one is pretty huge. Combine that with the fact the St. Louis really isn't a Free Agent destination, it's hard to see where the cavalry comes from to even compete with the Dallases and Nashvilles in the playoffs, much less the Colorados and Vegases
Louie the Blue
Because it's a trap
- Jul 27, 2010
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I don't think it's time to rebuild.
I think the roster's at a stage comparable to after the 2016 run where changes were going to come regardless.
If Schenn/ROR/Perron all regress in the next season, then it might be time to rebuild, but not now. And personally, I'd want to trade Schenn sooner than later because I think that contract has a good chance to age poorly and Schenn can still bring an influx of younger talent whether it be younger players or a high draft pick.
Bring in two top 6 W(assuming Tarasenko's gone, let Schwartz walk) and a LD and this team will be good to go.
I think the roster's at a stage comparable to after the 2016 run where changes were going to come regardless.
If Schenn/ROR/Perron all regress in the next season, then it might be time to rebuild, but not now. And personally, I'd want to trade Schenn sooner than later because I think that contract has a good chance to age poorly and Schenn can still bring an influx of younger talent whether it be younger players or a high draft pick.
Bring in two top 6 W(assuming Tarasenko's gone, let Schwartz walk) and a LD and this team will be good to go.
We haven’t had elite talent since we dealt Pronger and MacInnis retired.
Well...kinda. I mean, we probably should, as our division is a nightmare, we have a handful of question marks on the roster and the prospect pool is dry. Still, as many issues as I see on the roster and as worried as I am about our future, you will rarely see playoff teams...and as crap as it was a few months ago, we were briefly in the playoffs...rebuild.
I think we'd have to have a fruitless coaching change first before we actually think about retooling or rebuilding.
I think we'd have to have a fruitless coaching change first before we actually think about retooling or rebuilding.
Rebuild? No
Retool? Absolutely, we went from team that missed the playoffs in 2018 and added key pieces to make a team a Cup winner the next season. I think it's possible a few shrewd acquisitions could put us back into being a contender
Retool? Absolutely, we went from team that missed the playoffs in 2018 and added key pieces to make a team a Cup winner the next season. I think it's possible a few shrewd acquisitions could put us back into being a contender
We can’t compete with Dallas and Nashville? Dallas didn’t even make the playoffs and Nashville is about to re-tool, they already moved Arvidsson and may lose a guy like Duchene to Seattle.
I know you may just be using them as examples but our situation really isn’t that dire. Many other teams have just as many holes as us, and once free agency is complete, I bet our lineup will look pretty solid again. If Montreal’s roster can make it to the Cup, the Blues theoretically could as well. We still have plenty of talent.
Reality Czech
Registered User
- Apr 17, 2017
- 5,832
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So you would feel better watching a worse team? I really don't get this line of thinking from a fan perspective. This team has invested a lot of time, money and energy to build this team yet fans want them to tear it down just two years after winning a Cup because they are so eager to start a rebuild? That's a head scratcher for me. Being a fan of any team requires having a bit of faith, and it seems like a portion of this fan base has none whatsoever.
I don't think teams need to always follow the "tear it down and rebuild" approach. And if you haven't noticed, it's far from a guarantee of success. If the team keeps trending downward after this year, then we can talk but the Blues aren't going to abandon their long term plan just because of one disappointing, injury-riddled season. You want to alienate ROR, Schenn, Parayko, Binner, and the rest of the team by waving the while flag right now? Not to mention a large portion of the fan base who aren't HF nerds, and aren't always trying to outthink Armstrong and the front office.
Feel free to disagree with some moves he's made, but it's silly when fans act like Armstrong doesn't know what he's doing as if he somehow lucked into his current position. The team is still a business and they have to make smart business moves, and I fail to see how starting a rebuild right now is good for business.
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NYI is what the Blues used to be. They hit, they're deep, they play great defense, and they have a number of guys hitting their prime or entering it. Montreal caught lightning in a bottle. Can't pray for that to happen and plan around a first round exit team getting hot and playing way over their head. The Montreal tag is really getting to me this year. Do you guys not remember that 12-year run where we only won ONE playoff series? Us and Nashville are around the same area. Probably not a bottom 5 team, fringe playoff team, not a contender.
Teams are so close talent wise due to cap. A bit of luck makes you a contender. A run of injuries or bad luck makes you a bust. Dallas went from Finals to missing playoffs in 1 year.
When you have core of veteran talent you need to supplement it, retool around it, not sell it off so you can be bad for a decade. That makes no sense.
When you have core of veteran talent you need to supplement it, retool around it, not sell it off so you can be bad for a decade. That makes no sense.
ChuckLefley
Registered User
- Jan 5, 2016
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Where this team is depends on a few things:
Do the young guys develop. If Thomas, Kyrou and Kostin become who they can be, and have shown flashes of, then we are good.
Do some players get back to where they were before this season. Parayko, Schwartz and Schenn, mainly.
Can the older players keep doing it. Perron is 33.
Can we replace the players leaving? Gunnarsson, Bozak, Tarasenko.
a lot of questions, but if those are all resolved or mostly, than we just need some tweaks. The biggest question mark that I see is in net. Binnington was amazing in the 2019 regular season but, while he made clutch saves, his numbers have been pretty ordinary since then, with one really hot month each season. Husso had a few moments, but didn’t provide any security of Binnington got hurt.
Do the young guys develop. If Thomas, Kyrou and Kostin become who they can be, and have shown flashes of, then we are good.
Do some players get back to where they were before this season. Parayko, Schwartz and Schenn, mainly.
Can the older players keep doing it. Perron is 33.
Can we replace the players leaving? Gunnarsson, Bozak, Tarasenko.
a lot of questions, but if those are all resolved or mostly, than we just need some tweaks. The biggest question mark that I see is in net. Binnington was amazing in the 2019 regular season but, while he made clutch saves, his numbers have been pretty ordinary since then, with one really hot month each season. Husso had a few moments, but didn’t provide any security of Binnington got hurt.
