Post-season Training Camp Thread

[Stupendous Yappi]

Thomas would mesh really well with prime age Steen. Who else plays like that? Maybe Schenn if he had more hockey sense.

I don’t see a prospect coming up with that kind of game, and I’m starting to wonder a little at Kyrou’s shot.

 

[stlbluz]

Just think about how rusty the refs are going to be... You won't believe that either. Or alternatively, because we're starting fresh, they could be calling almost everything - changing the tone of these playoffs.

But with no fans in the stands, how will they know that they suck?

 

[542365]

Thomas would mesh really well with prime age Steen. Who else plays like that? Maybe Schenn if he had more hockey sense.

I don’t see a prospect coming up with that kind of game, and I’m starting to wonder a little at Kyrou’s shot.

He unleashed a bullet at the scrimmage that rang off the bar and out of play from pretty far out. I was pretty surprised because I’ve also not been impressed with his shot. Until now, though, he hasn’t really needed to have an incredible shot to produce, even in the AHL. It’s possible he’s seen the need for improvement in that area and put in the work. That’s one thing you could definitely work on during quarantine.

 

[DatDude44]

Schwartz-Thomas-Tarasenko has a bit of an STL line feel to it, except I feel like Thomas is a better playmaker than Lehtera, certainly light years faster, and probably just as effective defensively due to his speed. The only thing that would be lacking on that line, and it probably has a lot to do with why Thomas is still with Bozak, is that Thomas still isn't particularly good on the dot.

A lot of what u said has to do with Thomas’s brain as well, not just his tangible abilities.

 

[DatDude44]

Agree with this, and I don’t really think he’d work all that well with Tarasenko anyway. Tarasenko’s goals often come when he has the puck for a few seconds, changes the angle, and then unleashes his rocket. Thomas excels at getting the puck to the front of the net, which is not really Vladi’s specialty. Sanford, Sundqvist, Bozak, and Blais are probably our best at that.

I’m pretty sure I’ve posted this before, but Thomas would absolutely slay with either of the Tkachuk boys. Both guys don’t mind bullying their way to the front and setting up shop. Thomas always seems to find a way to get the puck there, and both guys have the size and skill to finish in tight. They’d be a force.

Thomas excels at creating space for himself and finding open teammates wherever they are. Him and tarasenko would be absolutely lethal together. Imagine if tarasenko actually played with a legit line driving playmaker, then all his goals wouldn’t just be from him creating for himself. In my opinion it’s the only reason why he’s never been a 40+- 50 goal scorer yet.

 

[BlueDream]

I obviously have zero concerns about anything related to Thomas' offensive game. I think he's going to be a consistent 70+ point center in his prime. I hope he can learn from O'Reilly and become a good defensive center too, though. That's what we are really going to start needing from him starting next season.

With talk of moving Steen and Bozak - and them only having 1 year left anyways - along with Schwartz, just think if all 3 of them were gone in a calendar year. That's 3 forwards that do a lot to help us in the defensive zone and they can also all kill penalties. Thus another reason why I think trading Schwartz is one of the worst ideas being proposed here, but alas.

I hope young guys like Thomas, Sanford, Blais and MacEachern start taking strides next season to improve that part of their game and fill more of a defensively-responsible role.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

Thomas excels at creating space for himself and finding open teammates wherever they are. Him and tarasenko would be absolutely lethal together. Imagine if tarasenko actually played with a legit line driving playmaker, then all his goals wouldn’t just be from him creating for himself. In my opinion it’s the only reason why he’s never been a 40+- 50 goal scorer yet.

Absolutely agreed. I’ve always wished he used the one-timer more, but that also could tie in with him never having a center like Thomas.

 

[Mike Liut]

Thomas excels at creating space for himself and finding open teammates wherever they are. Him and tarasenko would be absolutely lethal together. Imagine if tarasenko actually played with a legit line driving playmaker, then all his goals wouldn’t just be from him creating for himself. In my opinion it’s the only reason why he’s never been a 40+- 50 goal scorer yet.

That line would need a 2way puck hound on LW

 

[Celtic Note]

I obviously have zero concerns about anything related to Thomas' offensive game. I think he's going to be a consistent 70+ point center in his prime. I hope he can learn from O'Reilly and become a good defensive center too, though. That's what we are really going to start needing from him starting next season.

With talk of moving Steen and Bozak - and them only having 1 year left anyways - along with Schwartz, just think if all 3 of them were gone in a calendar year. That's 3 forwards that do a lot to help us in the defensive zone and they can also all kill penalties. Thus another reason why I think trading Schwartz is one of the worst ideas being proposed here, but alas.

I hope young guys like Thomas, Sanford, Blais and MacEachern start taking strides next season to improve that part of their game and fill more of a defensively-responsible role.

I agree with trading Schwartz as a bad idea. That signals a rebuild to me. And if we are doing that, then really do it.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

I agree with trading Schwartz as a bad idea. That signals a rebuild to me. And if we are doing that, then really do it.

We can't keep everybody. It's not just this offseason with Petro and Dunn. Next year Thomas, Schwartz, Binny, Sanford, Barbs. The following year Parayko and Perron. Letting Bozo and Steen walk won't be sufficient. Need to make hard decisions. Dealing Schwartz may be best path forward in flat cap era.

 

[BlueDream]

We can't keep everybody. It's not just this offseason with Petro and Dunn. Next year Thomas, Schwartz, Binny, Sanford, Barbs. The following year Parayko and Perron. Letting Bozo and Steen walk won't be sufficient. Need to make hard decisions. Dealing Schwartz may be best path forward in flat cap era.

I’m not seeing Dunn as a priority over Schwartz (as long as we sign Petro). Also Perron is getting older so he’s not either. A young forward like a Barbashev is possibly taken by Seattle. I still think we can maneuver through with other moves.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

I’m not seeing Dunn as a priority over Schwartz (as long as we sign Petro). Also Perron is getting older so he’s not either. A young forward like a Barbashev is possibly taken by Seattle. I still think we can maneuver through with other moves.

Perhaps. There are different paths we could take. My point wasn't necessarily that Schwartz should be traded and Dunn kept. I don't think we trust Dunn as true top 4 D and I think he has value around the league- I'd likely deal him if I couldn't get him to agree to cheap (less than $2mm for 1 or 2 years) bridge deal. I was just saying that we are gong to face tough choices and lose good players. That doesn't mean we are entering a "rebuild" as previous poster said. It's just reality in a cap world.

We all want to say that we sign Petro by subtracting Bozak and Steen but that could be cost-prohibitive. And Schwartz is UFA after the coming season. How much do we want to spend on winger who isn't elite goal scorer? He is really good at lot of things but would you give him Schenn contract? That seems like baseline of what he will cost. Getting talent back for Jaden (and Dunn) might be best of our imperfect options as we look to threepeat.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

Schenn-O’Reilly-Perron
Schwartz-Thomas-Tarasenko
Sanford-Sundqvist-Kyrou
Blais-Barbashev-Steen/Kostin
MacEachern

Dunn-Pietrangelo
Scandella-Parayko
Mikkola-Faulk
Bortuzzo

Binnington
Husso


Bridge Dunn and this team is cap compliant. I don’t get why everyone thinks moving Allen, Bozak, and Gunnarsson is going to be some impossible task. Yeah the cap is lower than expected, but there’s quite a few teams with a BUNCH of cap space. We don’t need to move Schwartz or Dunn to keep Petro.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Schenn-O’Reilly-Perron
Schwartz-Thomas-Tarasenko
Sanford-Sundqvist-Kyrou
Blais-Barbashev-Steen/Kostin
MacEachern

Dunn-Pietrangelo
Scandella-Parayko
Mikkola-Faulk
Bortuzzo

Binnington
Husso


Bridge Dunn and this team is cap compliant. I don’t get why everyone thinks moving Allen, Bozak, and Gunnarsson is going to be some impossible task. Yeah the cap is lower than expected, but there’s quite a few teams with a BUNCH of cap space. We don’t need to move Schwartz or Dunn to keep Petro.

What happens after next season? How do you come up with $ to give raises to Dunn, Schwartz, and Thomas? And Barbs and Sanford and Binny too?

So yeah, you can dump Allen, Bozo, and Gunnar this year to make team compliant but you only buy a year. That's not nothing. And maybe Seattle bails us out. Or maybe we let Schwartz walk as UFA, but that would sting too. This is why dealing Schwartz and/or Dunn this summer feel like part of longer term solution.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

What happens after next season? How do you come up with $ to give raises to Dunn, Schwartz, and Thomas? And Barbs and Sanford and Binny too?

So yeah, you can dump Allen, Bozo, and Gunnar this year to make team compliant but you only buy a year. That's not nothing. And maybe Seattle bails us out. Or maybe we let Schwartz walk as UFA, but that would sting too. This is why dealing Schwartz and/or Dunn this summer feel like part of longer term solution.

Steen retires, Faulk goes to Seattle, Perron gets dealt. Schwartz is up in the air, as it depends on if Thomas gets a long term deal or not. If we can afford him after the extensions, I’d move Sanford instead.

I personally would give Dunn a 2 year bridge deal, so we can have a better idea of what we can give him after those other contracts get settled on.

2 years from now would look something like this:

Schenn-Thomas-Tarasenko
Schwartz/Sanford-O’Reilly-Kyrou
Blais-Alexandrov-Kostin
MacEachern-Barbashev-Sundqvist
Toropchenko, Poganski

Dunn-Pietrangelo
Scandella-Parayko
Mikkola-Perunovich
TBD

Binnington
Husso

 

[DatDude44]

That line would need a 2way puck hound on LW

Schwartz

 

[WeWentBlues]

Coming out from under my rock. Feels good to be almost back.

 

[MissouriMook]

Didn't get to see much of the scrimmage today, but Blais had 3 goals and Tucker, playing LW instead of LD had 2. In the little bit I did catch, Mikkola had an amazing play setting up a goal by Sundqvist. He scraped the puck off the boards, beating his man to the play, and made a great d-to-d pass to relieve pressure. He then took a head man pass and carried the puck from inside the defensive blue line to just inside the attacking blueline, shedding a forechecker or two along the way, and made a nice seam pass to Sunny to send him in clear. Every time I watch this kid I am more and more convinced he's ready for the show.

 

[izzy]

im banking blais for conn smythe

how do i make that bet

 

[BlueDream]

Didn't get to see much of the scrimmage today, but Blais had 3 goals and Tucker, playing LW instead of LD had 2. In the little bit I did catch, Mikkola had an amazing play setting up a goal by Sundqvist. He scraped the puck off the boards, beating his man to the play, and made a great d-to-d pass to relieve pressure. He then took a head man pass and carried the puck from inside the defensive blue line to just inside the attacking blueline, shedding a forechecker or two along the way, and made a nice seam pass to Sunny to send him in clear. Every time I watch this kid I am more and more convinced he's ready for the show.

I think he’s a huge key to our team moving forward, especially if Petro walked. I see him being a good partner for either Petro or Faulk.

If he can turn into a Scandella-type of player then our defense is setup real nice either way. And from what I’ve seen of him I believe he is the real deal as opposed to another Lindbohm.

 

[brokeu91]

im banking blais for conn smythe

how do i make that bet

Become a voter, I think

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Reading the comments about Blais from Berube, I’m starting to get some expectations for that line with Thomas and Bozak. If they can be a threat, suddenly the Schwartz/Schenn/Tarasenko line and the Sanford/O’Reilly/Perron lines create huge matchup headaches for the opposition.

I don’t really expect the Blues to recapture the magic you need to navigate 4 series, but there also no reason they couldn’t. I just kind of expect the lucky bounces to not add up as much this year. But in terms of the roster and lines, I love what Berube has put together. It puts some weight on Sanford and Blais.

And I haven’t even mentioned Sundqvist (who could easily slide up) and the 4th line with Steen, MacEachern and Barbashev. The forwards are deep again.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Reading the comments about Blais from Berube, I’m starting to get some expectations for that line with Thomas and Bozak. If they can be a threat, suddenly the Schwartz/Schenn/Tarasenko line and the Sanford/O’Reilly/Perron lines create huge matchup headaches for the opposition.

I don’t really expect the Blues to recapture the magic you need to navigate 4 series, but there also no reason they couldn’t. I just kind of expect the lucky bounces to not add up as much this year. But in terms of the roster and lines, I love what Berube has put together. It puts some weight on Sanford and Blais.

And I haven’t even mentioned Sundqvist (who could easily slide up) and the 4th line with Steen, MacEachern and Barbashev. The forwards are deep again.

I think these 2 things:
1. We have a damn good team and are clearly the best team in the West
2. You need to be lucky to win so the best team doesn't always win

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

I think these 2 things:
1. We have a damn good team and are clearly the best team in the West
2. You need to be lucky to win so the best team doesn't always win

Colorado may have something to say about it. A little too much is being made of their lack of experience. I of course think the Blues can bear them in a 7 game series. But I won’t be surprised if the Avs made it to the SCF. I’m glad we won’t face them in the first round.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Colorado may have something to say about it. A little too much is being made of their lack of experience. I of course think the Blues can bear them in a 7 game series. But I won’t be surprised if the Avs made it to the SCF. I’m glad we won’t face them in the first round.

I think we are deeper, both up front and on D. They have some great players but I’d bet on us.