Dr.Sens(e)
Registered User
With the HFNHL trade deadline on the horizon, one question has begun to circulate in St. Louis. Are the Blues going to be buyers, or sellers?
A month ago, this was not in question. The Blues were solidly in a playoff spot and it was no secret they had been in discussions with no less than half a dozen teams regarding adding a scoring forward. That seemed to be the one missing piece from a solid, if not exceptional, line-up boasting arguably the best defensive unit in the league, solid goaltending and a trio of top tier centers.
But after a mid-season swoon, the Blues have dropped to 9th in the Western conference – unfamiliar ground for a team with the such a stellar regular season record and four President’s Trophy banners from the past five seasons hanging in their rink. They been in the playoffs 11 out of 12 seasons under the current regime.
While there is no interest in blowing up this team’s core, one name that has been asked about and is quietly beginning to circulate is the name of Chris Pronger.
The long-time Blues captain is reaching the twilight of his career, and while he plans to play several more seasons, with a crowded blue-line and a salary cap that is bursting at the seams, it is believed the team is ready to hand over the captaincy to Zdeno Chara. With solid young talent surrounding him, including core top 4 players like Marc Staal, Dustin Byfuglien and Rostislav Klesla, not to mention a full dozen other young defenceman making their NHL debut this season, the dealing of a big salary in Pronger would seem to make sense.
Blues management have officially denied Pronger is available, but at the same time also reiterated that no player on the team would ever be considered untradeable.
A month ago, this was not in question. The Blues were solidly in a playoff spot and it was no secret they had been in discussions with no less than half a dozen teams regarding adding a scoring forward. That seemed to be the one missing piece from a solid, if not exceptional, line-up boasting arguably the best defensive unit in the league, solid goaltending and a trio of top tier centers.
But after a mid-season swoon, the Blues have dropped to 9th in the Western conference – unfamiliar ground for a team with the such a stellar regular season record and four President’s Trophy banners from the past five seasons hanging in their rink. They been in the playoffs 11 out of 12 seasons under the current regime.
While there is no interest in blowing up this team’s core, one name that has been asked about and is quietly beginning to circulate is the name of Chris Pronger.
The long-time Blues captain is reaching the twilight of his career, and while he plans to play several more seasons, with a crowded blue-line and a salary cap that is bursting at the seams, it is believed the team is ready to hand over the captaincy to Zdeno Chara. With solid young talent surrounding him, including core top 4 players like Marc Staal, Dustin Byfuglien and Rostislav Klesla, not to mention a full dozen other young defenceman making their NHL debut this season, the dealing of a big salary in Pronger would seem to make sense.
Blues management have officially denied Pronger is available, but at the same time also reiterated that no player on the team would ever be considered untradeable.
sitting in 9th place. Maybe it is time for a coaching change or perhaps moving all the aging vetern out of town.
