2019 - 2020 St. Louis Blues - Defending the Cup - Part 2: The Depth from Within

[Celtic Note]

I'm not even convinced we are going to have to have a major rebuild just yet. If we keep drafting the way we are, we could be competitive for a long time. Right now we are in a position where we can keep our 1sts and stock the cupboard back up.

Schenn and Faulk right now are projected to be the only 2 big contracts we have in their mid-30s. It's not much different than what we currently have Steen at and what Bouwmeester was at just a year ago.

All I'm saying is, this can be managed so I'm not worried at all as we currently stand. I think Schenn and Faulk will give us good seasons at least until they're about 33. If they fall off the last 2 years, then whatever.

But yes hopefully we still do win another Cup in the next 5 years while we have a great shot at it.

I don’t disagree. But, things have to go right.

If we need to move out Steen and Allen there may firsts attached. Hopefully the asset cost is less.

The one concern I would have is keeping our good young players. If they are due big raises and we have too much committed to old player, it may be tough to keep them (the NTCs could pose a challenge).

 

[Ranksu]

I don’t disagree. But, things have to go right.

If we need to move out Steen and Allen there may firsts attached. Hopefully the asset cost is less.

The one concern I would have is keeping our good young players. If they are due big raises and we have too much committed to old player, it may be tough to keep them (the NTCs could pose a challenge).

If cost of 1st + gets you get rid off Allen + Steen you migt need to push button. Or Allen + Bozak, but we don't need to give that much of assets. Do you value 1st + more than what Bozak is?

 

[Blueston]

I'm not even convinced we are going to have to have a major rebuild just yet. If we keep drafting the way we are, we could be competitive for a long time. Right now we are in a position where we can keep our 1sts and stock the cupboard back up.

Schenn and Faulk right now are projected to be the only 2 big contracts we have in their mid-30s. It's not much different than what we currently have Steen at and what Bouwmeester was at just a year ago.

All I'm saying is, this can be managed so I'm not worried at all as we currently stand. I think Schenn and Faulk will give us good seasons at least until they're about 33. If they fall off the last 2 years, then whatever.

But yes hopefully we still do win another Cup in the next 5 years while we have a great shot at it.

I remember thinking as soon as Yzerman got old we would pass Wings. And then after Federov. And then Datsyuk. They did eventually fall back to earth but was lot longer run than I ever expected. Point is, we will likely have to rebuild at some point but really no way to know when. We have darn good team now and they are right to ride this as long as we can.

 

[BlueDream]

I remember thinking as soon as Yzerman got old we would pass Wings. And then after Federov. And then Datsyuk. They did eventually fall back to earth but was lot longer run than I ever expected. Point is, we will likely have to rebuild at some point but really no way to know when. We have darn good team now and they are right to ride this as long as we can.

I mean our own team made the playoffs 25 years in a row before.

We had to rebuild basically because of an ownership change.

But we have a culture here of being continuously competitive.

 

[Blueston]

Kyrou is apparently healthy and heading to SA. Fabbri and Sanford are on the clock. Both need to be better.

 

[BlueDream]

Kyrou is apparently healthy and heading to SA. Fabbri and Sanford are on the clock. Both need to be better.

He told Korac "see you soon." Love the confidence.

But yeah they are. Fabbri at least is showing some flashes I guess. Sanford better get his shit together or he is never gonna play here. And I think there's very little chance of him actually doing that. This is his last season in St. Louis.

 

[Brian39]

I don’t disagree. But, things have to go right.

If we need to move out Steen and Allen there may firsts attached. Hopefully the asset cost is less.

The one concern I would have is keeping our good young players. If they are due big raises and we have too much committed to old player, it may be tough to keep them (the NTCs could pose a challenge).

Steen can be bought out to give us $4.6 mil in cap savings next year and only a $1.16 mil cap hit the following season. There is absolutely no chance we pay anything remotely close to a 1st round pick to trade him.

I've repeatedly made my case about Allen consistently being fine as a backup/1B, so I don't think he will cost anything close to a 1st to move. But that trade value is heavily contingent on his play this year, so none of us can know what it will look like. If it would cost a 1st to move Allen, we could simply buy out Steen and trade Bozak. That would free up $9.6 mil in cap space while keeping all our valuable futures assets.

There are still a lot of moving parts about exactly how we will clear the needed space next summer, but we shouldn't have to use major assets to do it.

 

[simon IC]

I would be very unhappy to lose another 1st just to get rid of a bad contract. I don't think Armstrong is that stupid.

 

[SneakerPimp82]

I would be very unhappy to lose another 1st just to get rid of a bad contract. I don't think Armstrong is that stupid.

It wouldn't be a question of stupidity as much as desperation. As already stated, if Allen plays to his usual numbers, his contract can be traded, and Steen can be bought out at season's end if necessary. I don't envision this management group being that desperate.

 

[Spektre]

I talked about this when it happened but this is the Ken Wilson interview with Frank Cussumano a day or two after the Blues eliminated the Sharks. I’m not sure if Frank did another interview with him after the Finals or not. It was cool to hear how much the Blues still meant to Wilson at the end of the interview.

Segment 4 - Ken Wilson 5/22/19

 

[A Real Barn Burner]

I talked about this when it happened but this is the Ken Wilson interview with Frank Cussumano a day or two after the Blues eliminated the Sharks. I’m not sure if Frank did another interview with him after the Finals or not. It was cool to hear how much the Blues still meant to Wilson at the end of the interview.

Segment 4 - Ken Wilson 5/22/19

Thanks for that Ken And Joe where the best

 

[Renard]

According to the official stats, Sanford got 8 minutes of ice time vs Toronto last night and was credited with five hits. That was the most hits for any Blues player. Or Toronto player.

Five hits in eight minutes is pretty impressive. Maybe the coaches have gotten Sanford's attention.

 

[Brian39]

According to the official stats, Sanford got 8 minutes of ice time vs Toronto last night and was credited with five hits. That was the most hits for any Blues player. Or Toronto player.

Five hits in eight minutes is pretty impressive. Maybe the coaches have gotten Sanford's attention.

He has to know the reality. He was a healthy scratch opening night and was inserted into the lineup due to an injury that doesn't appear to be long-term. Blais has clearly created a huge gap between them for that 2LW spot, so there is exactly what roster spot he has a chance at when we are healthy. He needs to beat out Fabbri or he doesn't have a spot in the lineup when we are healthy. He also knows that MacMac is more than happy to throw the body to get a lineup spot and he has to be at least aware that Kyrou/Kostin are going to be knocking on the door later in the year.

He's at legitimate risk of being traded or waived mid-season and should be playing desperate if he wants to stay here.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

For Athletic subscribers, there is a fantastic interview with Doug Armstrong by Pierre Lebrun. He talks a lot about the team philosophy, about "11M players", building the roster, etc. He mentions expecting this roster to be able to compete for the next 5 years, and that most of the players are in their primes. I loved the comment about needing skill AND heart. He also said he thought the 2014 team (Olympics year) was actually the best roster the Blues had had, and they lost in the first round. (There was an anonymous Blues player quoted that he thought last year's team wasn't the best roster they'd had, and he agreed.)

 

[Brian39]

For Athletic subscribers, there is a fantastic interview with Doug Armstrong by Pierre Lebrun. He talks a lot about the team philosophy, about "11M players", building the roster, etc. He mentions expecting this roster to be able to compete for the next 5 years, and that most of the players are in their primes. I loved the comment about needing skill AND heart. He also said he thought the 2014 team (Olympics year) was actually the best roster the Blues had had, and they lost in the first round. (There was an anonymous Blues player quoted that he thought last year's team wasn't the best roster they'd had, and he agreed.)

LeBrun: Q&A with Doug Armstrong on building a winner and...

Link for the lazy. As I say on here at least twice a week: subscribe to the Athletic. Even if you share my opinion about JR being just okay, it is well worth the money.

Edit: Interesting quote from Army when talking about Petro:

"We have a lot of wealthy players but maybe no really rich players? And that’s the way we believe we can stay competitive in this market. I look at a team that I view that has been good for a number of years in Boston. They have their top players that have bought into an organizational outlook and quite honestly, we have too."

 

[AjaxManifesto]

LeBrun: Q&A with Doug Armstrong on building a winner and...

Link for the lazy. As I say on here at least twice a week: subscribe to the Athletic. Even if you share my opinion about JR being just okay, it is well worth the money.

Edit: Interesting quote from Army when talking about Petro:

"We have a lot of wealthy players but maybe no really rich players? And that’s the way we believe we can stay competitive in this market. I look at a team that I view that has been good for a number of years in Boston. They have their top players that have bought into an organizational outlook and quite honestly, we have too."

Fantastic article.

This makes the Athletic subscription worth it.

 

[Xerloris]

For Athletic subscribers, there is a fantastic interview with Doug Armstrong by Pierre Lebrun. He talks a lot about the team philosophy, about "11M players", building the roster, etc. He mentions expecting this roster to be able to compete for the next 5 years, and that most of the players are in their primes. I loved the comment about needing skill AND heart. He also said he thought the 2014 team (Olympics year) was actually the best roster the Blues had had, and they lost in the first round. (There was an anonymous Blues player quoted that he thought last year's team wasn't the best roster they'd had, and he agreed.)

LeBrun: Q&A with Doug Armstrong on building a winner and...

Link for the lazy. As I say on here at least twice a week: subscribe to the Athletic. Even if you share my opinion about JR being just okay, it is well worth the money.

Edit: Interesting quote from Army when talking about Petro:

"We have a lot of wealthy players but maybe no really rich players? And that’s the way we believe we can stay competitive in this market. I look at a team that I view that has been good for a number of years in Boston. They have their top players that have bought into an organizational outlook and quite honestly, we have too."

Can we stop with the f***ing propaganda already? I use adblock for a reason, I don't need people typing out ads in the disguise of a legitimate post.

 

[JoshFromMO]

Can we stop with the ****ing propaganda already? I use adblock for a reason, I don't need people typing out ads in the disguise of a legitimate post.

Please point to where these are not legitimate posts

 

[Brian39]

Can we stop with the ****ing propaganda already? I use adblock for a reason, I don't need people typing out ads in the disguise of a legitimate post.

You got me, I accrued 2962 messages on this Blues forum (almost never wading into NHL or other team discussions) and passionately followed this team for 2+ decades just to build up the cache to advertise for a website I'm in no way affiliated with and to support a beat writer I've been vocally critical of for 2+ seasons.

FWIW, I would recommend not posting on a Blues forum if you're not interested in knowing what our GM has to say about arguably the biggest contract negotiation in franchise history.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Can we stop with the ****ing propaganda already? I use adblock for a reason, I don't need people typing out ads in the disguise of a legitimate post.

Is there some different forum where I should be trying to discuss the recently published interview with the Blues general manager? I don't work for the Athletic, dude. I know not everyone does, which is why I paraphrased some salient points.

 

[Xerloris]

You got me, I accrued 2962 messages on this Blues forum (almost never wading into NHL or other team discussions) and passionately followed this team for 2+ decades just to build up the cache to advertise for a website I'm in no way affiliated with and to support a beat writer I've been vocally critical of for 2+ seasons.

FWIW, I would recommend not posting on a Blues forum if you're not interested in knowing what our GM has to say about arguably the biggest contract negotiation in franchise history.

You said it yourself in the original post. You push people to subscribe to the website at least twice a week. Talking about an article is not the same as literally saying "As I say on here at least twice a week: subscribe to the Athletic".

Is there some different forum where I should be trying to discuss the recently published interview with the Blues general manager? I don't work for the Athletic, dude. I know not everyone does, which is why I paraphrased some salient points.

I have nothing against discussing the articles and you're correct. You should not have been involved in my quote. So my mistake and I apologize.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Is there some different forum where I should be trying to discuss the recently published interview with the Blues general manager? I don't work for the Athletic, dude. I know not everyone does, which is why I paraphrased some salient points.

Dr. Yappi! Busting out the vocab lately!!

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Dr. Yappi! Busting out the vocab lately!!

I’m trying to enrich your lives any way I can. But with this forum it frequently feels like I’m straightening the deck chairs on the Titanic.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I’m trying to enrich your lives any way I can. But with this forum it frequently feels like I’m straightening the deck chairs on the Titanic.

Duuuuhhhhh.....wuuuhhhhh??

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

For Athletic subscribers, there is a fantastic interview with Doug Armstrong by Pierre Lebrun. He talks a lot about the team philosophy, about "11M players", building the roster, etc. He mentions expecting this roster to be able to compete for the next 5 years, and that most of the players are in their primes. I loved the comment about needing skill AND heart. He also said he thought the 2014 team (Olympics year) was actually the best roster the Blues had had, and they lost in the first round. (There was an anonymous Blues player quoted that he thought last year's team wasn't the best roster they'd had, and he agreed.)

I’d say the team in 14-15 that lost to the Wild were better than the 13-14 team. Maybe he got confused.

Steen-Backes-Oshie
Schwartz-Lehtera-Tarasenko
Berglund-Stastny-Jaskin(somehow had great chemistry)
Ott-Lapierre/Goc-Reaves

Bouwmeester-Pietrangelo
Gunnarsson-Shattenkirk
Jackman-Cole/Bortuzzo

Allen
Elliott



That 51 win team should NOT have lost to Minnesota that season. Definitely our biggest choke job in the Army era. Sucks it cost us Oshie.