2020-2021 St. Louis Blues: Generic Thread Titles Be Damned (Part III)

[Frenzy31]

Excellent. If we hadn't subsequently made that steal of an O'Reilly trade, it's clear that the trade for Schenn was our best trade in a while.

Jaybo was a great trade also. And as much as some gripe about Faulk, but we gave up very little for him.

Sundquist and Kostin for reaves and whom ever....

 

[Vincenzo Arelliti]

Jaybo was a great trade also. And as much as some gripe about Faulk, but we gave up very little for him.

Sundquist and Kostin for reaves and whom ever....

Jbo was too long ago for me to consider, but I do consider that an excellent trade. A complete steal looking back. Which is why I think people generally overrate picks.

 

[WATTAGE4451]

Almost exclusively because we have gone a whopping 43.5% in the last 3 weeks. We were 24th prior to the PP catching fire in the past 3 weeks. Know how we caught fire? 10 PP goals scored by the following players:

Hoffman has 5. Tarasenko, Schwartz, Dunn, Bozak and Barby each have 1. That's all the goals.

Exactly 1 of those players is top 5 on our team in PP TOI per game (Tarasenko). Our 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th most used PP guys (by a per game basis) have 0 goals in this 8 game stretch that has dragged our PP from 24th to 10th. The recent improvement of the PP is a scathing indictment of whatever the hell we were trying to do for the first 3 months of the season. The improvement of the PP has come almost exclusively from guys deemed not appropriate for the top unit.

The key Is hoffman.
I think Hoffma also has 1 or 2 assists on those 5 other goals as well.

He needs IS the only "powerplay specialist" weve had that's actually lived up to the role.

It's criminal to not have him out there.

 

[Stealth JD]

The key Is hoffman.
I think Hoffma also has 1 or 2 assists on those 5 other goals as well.
He needs IS the only "powerplay specialist" weve had that's actually lived up to the role.

Shatty was pretty awesome as a known power-play producer. He was just an adventure the rest of the time.

 

[Brian39]

The key Is hoffman.
I think Hoffma also has 1 or 2 assists on those 5 other goals as well.

He needs IS the only "powerplay specialist" weve had that's actually lived up to the role.

It's criminal to not have him out there.

Yup, he has 3 PP assists to bring his total up to 8 PP points in the team's last 10 games (he was a healthy scratch in one of them). The team has 11 total PP goals in that stretch, which means Hoffman has contributed on 72.7% of the team's PP goals in the last 10 games. He has without question driven the turnaround of the team's PP.

 

[joe galiba]

on the power play:
Perron 5g 14a
O'Reilly 4g 6a
Hoffman 6g 7a
Krug 1g 11a
Valdi 2g 4a, at about half the games played is 4g 8a pace

everyone else has done basically nothing
Schenn 3g 3a
Schwartz 1g 1a
Dunn 2d 5a
Faulk 1g 2a, not a ton of time on the pp
Sanford 3g 0a
Bozak 1g 3a, about a 2g 6a pace with time missed

 

[MissouriMook]

It’s amazing how Schenn went from awesome to virtually useless so quickly. He was 9-7-16 and +9 in his first 18 games. He is now 5-11-16 and -8 in his last 33 games and really hasn’t been effective in any meaningful way when he’s not scoring.

 

[AjaxManifesto]

It’s amazing how Schenn went from awesome to virtually useless so quickly. He was 9-7-16 and +9 in his first 18 games. He is now 5-11-16 and -8 in his last 33 games and really hasn’t been effective in any meaningful way when he’s not scoring.

He may be playing hurt.

 

[MissouriMook]

He may be playing hurt.

If he’s not, that doesn’t bode well for the next 7 years of that contract.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

If he’s not, that doesn’t bode well for the next 7 years of that contract.

Playing hurt also doesn't bode well for a physical player heading into his 30s

 

[Renard]

Does Zack Sanford have any fans left on this forum?

I was rooting for him but I've about given up. The guy just doesn't have a high enough compete level to stay in the NHL.

 

[Linkens Mastery]

Does Zack Sanford have any fans left on this forum?

I was rooting for him but I've about given up. The guy just doesn't have a high enough compete level to stay in the NHL.

Im not a fan or a hater, he's a "safe" choice because he's not awful defensively. We would be perfectly fine with or without him.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

I was reading in the Athletic about the crazy restrictiveness the players’ protocol has been all season. Teams that are vaccinated are finally going to be able to have some rules relaxed, so guys can eat in the same room, ride in a golf cart together, etc. I can’t even fathom how isolating a road trip must feel when you are adhering to what they were required to do. Robin Lehner’s outspoken criticism of the protocol from a mental health standpoint was very moving.

When I see the team fighting through all the adversity they’ve had this year, on top of the pandemic itself, and finding a way to pull it together against a very difficult schedule, through the injuries, through the schedule disruptions due to other teams, through the limited fan support, it just makes me cringe when I read some forum bozo bitching about an OT loss to Vegas and how they are mentally weak.

It’s BS. This team has demonstrated incredible mental fortitude this year. Players league-wide deserve credit for fighting through this. Yes, they’re well compensated for it, but that doesn’t mean the isolation and demands aren’t brutal to experience.

The other thing I wonder though, and we got a hint of this last year in the bubble, will there be players or teams that cash in their chips and find postseason elimination to be a relief? Will they give their all to keep fighting, as you normally see in the Stanley Cup playoffs? If you have a little self-doubt that you can win it, post-season adversity may be harder to overcome. I could totally see guys thinking, “Thank goodness it’s finally over.”

I’m less worried about this mindset creeping into the Blues. But I’ll be interested watching other teams around the league, how deep can they dig?

 

[AjaxManifesto]

Does Zack Sanford have any fans left on this forum?

I was rooting for him but I've about given up. The guy just doesn't have a high enough compete level to stay in the NHL.

I'm still rooting for him.

 

[Brian39]

I was reading in the Athletic about the crazy restrictiveness the players’ protocol has been all season. Teams that are vaccinated are finally going to be able to have some rules relaxed, so guys can eat in the same room, ride in a golf cart together, etc. I can’t even fathom how isolating a road trip must feel when you are adhering to what they were required to do. Robin Lehner’s outspoken criticism of the protocol from a mental health standpoint was very moving.

When I see the team fighting through all the adversity they’ve had this year, on top of the pandemic itself, and finding a way to pull it together against a very difficult schedule, through the injuries, through the schedule disruptions due to other teams, through the limited fan support, it just makes me cringe when I read some forum bozo bitching about an OT loss to Vegas and how they are mentally weak.

It’s BS. This team has demonstrated incredible mental fortitude this year. Players league-wide deserve credit for fighting through this. Yes, they’re well compensated for it, but that doesn’t mean the isolation and demands aren’t brutal to experience.

The other thing I wonder though, and we got a hint of this last year in the bubble, will there be players or teams that cash in their chips and find postseason elimination to be a relief? Will they give their all to keep fighting, as you normally see in the Stanley Cup playoffs? If you have a little self-doubt that you can win it, post-season adversity may be harder to overcome. I could totally see guys thinking, “Thank goodness it’s finally over.”

I’m less worried about this mindset creeping into the Blues. But I’ll be interested watching other teams around the league, how deep can they dig?

The 2019 team had a reputation as the drunkest team in hockey and Gloria was quite literally the result of a group of guys hitting a bar and day drinking on a day off. I think most people who were pre-COVID regulars in the St. Louis nightlife have stories of seeing Blues players downtown. I wouldn't be surprised if mandated isolation has hit this team harder than others from a routine/sanity standpoint.

Restrictions are relaxing and vaccinated players are going to more confidently go back to their normal routines. I don't expect the same "thank God this is over" attitude towards playoffs that crept into the bubble.

 

[Xerloris]

The 2019 team had a reputation as the drunkest team in hockey and Gloria was quite literally the result of a group of guys hitting a bar and day drinking on a day off. I think most people who were pre-COVID regulars in the St. Louis nightlife have stories of seeing Blues players downtown. I wouldn't be surprised if mandated isolation has hit this team harder than others from a routine/sanity standpoint.

Restrictions are relaxing and vaccinated players are going to more confidently go back to their normal routines. I don't expect the same "thank God this is over" attitude towards playoffs that crept into the bubble.

Don't forget they have fans to play in front of now, albeit not a full house but 5k is nothing to snub your nose at.

 

[joe galiba]

The 2019 team had a reputation as the drunkest team in hockey and Gloria was quite literally the result of a group of guys hitting a bar and day drinking on a day off. I think most people who were pre-COVID regulars in the St. Louis nightlife have stories of seeing Blues players downtown. I wouldn't be surprised if mandated isolation has hit this team harder than others from a routine/sanity standpoint.

Restrictions are relaxing and vaccinated players are going to more confidently go back to their normal routines. I don't expect the same "thank God this is over" attitude towards playoffs that crept into the bubble.

the Blues franchise has a long history, right from the beginnings of the franchise, of being heavily involved in the st louis area nightlife

 

[LGB]

Does Zack Sanford have any fans left on this forum?

I was rooting for him but I've about given up. The guy just doesn't have a high enough compete level to stay in the NHL.

I still think he's a good third liner. The turnovers can be a problem but he generally has a positive xG impact and scores 5v5 goals at a decent rate.

 

[mike1320]

the Blues franchise has a long history, right from the beginnings of the franchise, of being heavily involved in the st louis area nightlife

And they got away with a lot more "fun" stuff back then, thanks to the lack of social media

 

[Bobby Orrtuzzo]

Hofer called up. Does he get into one of these games?

 

[BlueDream]

Hofer called up. Does he get into one of these games?

Doubtful.

 

[Frenzy31]

I think so. Garbage games at this point and it can be a reward. Plus travel with the team during playoffs

 

[Spear]

Why not? Meaningless games and I can't imagine the Blues Brass is happy with Husso's performance this year. Take a peek at how Hofer looks against NHLers to better gauge where he's at.

 

[BlueDream]

Lol. Hofer is 20 years old. His numbers in the AHL are awful and you guys want to throw him in the NHL?

That’s not happening. He’s not even close to being ready, and playing him in that game wouldn’t do any good besides further hurt his confidence.

The Blues do this stuff all the time. They like to call up prospects around playoff time so they can be around the team and see how pros prepare. It doesn’t mean they’re in the lineup.

 

[Vincenzo Arelliti]

Lol. Hofer is 20 years old. His numbers in the AHL are awful and you guys want to throw him in the NHL?

That’s not happening. He’s not even close to being ready, and playing him in that game wouldn’t do any good besides further hurt his confidence.

The Blues do this stuff all the time. They like to call up prospects around playoff time so they can be around the team and see how pros prepare. It doesn’t mean they’re in the lineup.

It also increase their pay, I believe.