I’m going to view things from a lines/pairings perspective.
Forwards
D’ags-Backes-Oshie
Can D’ags perform well enough to play with Backes and Oshie? If he can, the other 2 lines set up nicely. If not, Hitch may have to juggle lines to where it hurts other lines. How will all 3 perform since none of them played anywhere during the lockout? Can Backes get over his notorious slow starts? A slow start is half the season in a 48 game season. Can Oshie build on last season or is he already at his prime?
Perron-Bergy-Stewart
A potentially lethal line but also a potentially completely flop of a line. All 3 are very talented but can be streaky/unreliable at times. Defensive play could also be a concern for this line. If they’re all giving 100% and gain chemistry though, this could be a VERY good line as all 3 are very talented. This is the X-Factor line. How will Perron perform after having an extended off-season to fully recover from his concussion and get over his hesitancy? Will not playing during the lockout hurt him though? Bergy and Stewie played during the lockout and Stewie is apparently in the best shape of his life.
McDonald-Steen-Tarasenko
This line could easily end up being the top line in terms of goals scored IMO while the Backes line shuts down the opposition’s top line. Can McDonald stay healthy though? How will Steen perform at center? His most effective attributes on the defensive side of the game are really useful on the wing but he won’t be forechecking or working in the corners as much as a center now. Steen played center during the lockout in Sweden and Hitch said he did a good job of getting reacquainted to the position. Let’s hope that’s true. Tarasenko is the player I’m most excited to see. How quickly will he transition to the NHL? How will he handle defensive assignments against bigger, stronger, faster opponents?
Sobotka-Nichol-Langenbrunner
Sobotka is a little SOB. I love his game. He’s a very effective 4th liner who can move up and play on a higher line in the event of injuries as well. Good versatile player to have. He was a top scorer in the Czech league during the lockout so he should be good to go. I’m a little concerned how Nichol and Langenbrunner will perform out of the gate though given their ages. Neither played during the lockout and that’s notoriously hard for veterans to take that much time off, thus why I think we’ll see a lot of Reaves and Porter as well.
Extras: Reaves & Porter
I could see these guys, especially Reaves, get into quite a few games. If Nichol needs a rest, simply have Sobotka center the 4th line and insert one of these guys into the lineup. If Langenbrunner needs a break, then one of these two can simply be inserted into his spot. Neither played during the lockout but they’re both pretty young so they should be good to go. Porter is an absolute fitness freak though so I have no concerns about him.
1st call-up: Schwartz
I don’t see him making the team out of camp unless he either beats out Porter for the last forward spot (but it doesn’t make a lot of sense to have him sit in the press-box so I think Porter gets that spot) or if there are injuries or I suppose a trade but I don’t see that happening, at least not right away. There are pretty much guaranteed to be injuries though, especially in such a condensed season with only a 1 week training camp so I think Schwartz will still play for the Blues at least half the season. It gets a little thin at forward after Schwartz though. I like Cracknell as a fill-in for a checking role and Andrew Murray can be a solid bottom-6 guy as well but I don't seem much after that - lots of career minor leaguers and disappointments in Peoria right now.
Defense
Russell-Petro
The biggest weakness of this team IMO is still Petro’s partner. It sounds like Hitch wants to try Russell with Petro first. I don’t really like this pairing but I like it slightly more than Cole-Petro. If the Blues were to get a legitimate partner for Petro, it would solve quite a bit for the team IMO. How to do that without creating holes elsewhere is the near impossible task though. With this pairing, hopefully Russell can be good enough defensively to let Petro do his thing.
Jackman-Polak
The defensive shut-down pairing. I think this pairing has only been so-so in the past and should be better defensively than it has been a lot of the time but they should be a good pairing and seem to work well on the PK together.
Cole-Shatty
These guys have been paired together since they were 16 years old (they played on the US U-17 and U-18 teams together as well as the U18 and U20 Jr teams). They have good chemistry together. Hopefully they can show consistency though.
7th d-man: Woywitka
I honestly never thought we’d see him again. He’s not a bad 7th option though. If the Blues were to add a d-man to pair with Petro, that would likely push Woywitka to Peoria though and give the Blues better defensive depth. They’re pretty thin after Woywitka with the next callups after him likely being Fairchild, Ford and Chorney. The Blues seem to go through a lot of d-men every season and I see no reason why they won’t this season as well, especially since injuries are even more likely in a condensed schedule, so the defensive depth concerns me a little.
Goalies
Halak
Elliott
The main concern here is how both will perform after not really playing at all during the lockout (Halak played 1 game in the 2nd division German league). The Blues will need them to be on their game from the get-go, no rust, for the team to succeed. Injuries are a big concern for goalies in a condensed season so it’s good to have two dependable guys. If both stay healthy, I'm going to guess we'll see a 60/40 Halak/Elliott split. Can Elliott prove last season wasn’t a fluke though? If he’s as good as his new mask, he should be excellent.
Can these guys repeat their success from last season? Will the defensive play of their teammates be as good as it was last season? All big questions for this exciting Blues squad.