Half-Assed GDT: Pre-season Dallas - St. Louis

[rumrokh]

Tucker- he was my surprise player! Kid could skate, had good size and was involved all night. I don’t see a ton of upside, but could be a very good 4th liner.

I like Tucker and I have hopes he can work his way into being Bortuzzo+, but I thought he had kind of a rough outing last night. He was physical and continually made himself an option, which I dig, but he missed some coverage and got beaten to pucks I expect a defenseman to at least make a 50/50. He was crisp at Traverse City, so maybe he's a little tired.

 

[Bluesnatic27]

I went to the game Monday. It was nice going back to a hockey game after not being able to for the past two years.

It was a fairly sloppy game from both teams, which makes sense. I have to say though, if Neighbours gets a 9-game tryout, it should not come from his play that game. He does not process the game at a professional level and his frustration was apparent throughout the game. He couldn't keep up with the play and was consistently reaching to find the puck. He had his head down for the majority of the game, so he could never take advantage of any open lanes. He tried to play physical, only to be bumped off from any Dallas player. All-around, he looked like a normal prospect. That's fine, but it did reaffirm my stance that we all need to slow the roll on him a bit. His strengths were still there, but he's a classic case of a prospect that needs to learn how to score along with how to use his body as opposed to using his body to score, or "Nick Ritchie Syndrome". It is just one game and he could have just had a bad night. But I will be paying more attention to him now when I can in this pre-season.

I did like Perunovich and Tucker. Tucker was slow, but he put himself in the proper positions to disrupt play consistently. He knew where to go and when to get there, even if it took him a while to do so. Perunovich was playing a solid, professional game. He didn't really stand out in either the defensive or offensive zone (I'm ignoring the PP and strictly talking about even strength play). But when I paid attention to him, his lack of exposure was due to him playing the smart game. For a player that I had questions about due to his injury, this was the first instance of me being confident in seeing him in October or November.

Last player worth speaking about is Buchnevich. Holy hell is he good. He is smart, skilled, and will make any line he's on better. I think he should be stapled to Schenn as I think both will compliment each other well. I was astonished with some of the plays Buch was making in the 1st. He would attack the offensive zone and create space for his linemates like it was just natural for him. I know we've been talking about the young players, but Buch should be fun to watch for a long time.

 

[will1066]

Rangers fan coming in peace. On that Buch goal, I don't recall ever seeing him score on a slap pass at the top of the crease when he was in NY. Looked like you guys were on the PP and he was put there by design? In NY, he was always at the right half wall or against the post to the goalie's left. Buch really blossomed over the last two years. He'll be a good player for you.

 

[Brian39]

Last player worth speaking about is Buchnevich. Holy hell is he good. He is smart, skilled, and will make any line he's on better. I think he should be stapled to Schenn as I think both will compliment each other well. I was astonished with some of the plays Buch was making in the 1st. He would attack the offensive zone and create space for his linemates like it was just natural for him. I know we've been talking about the young players, but Buch should be fun to watch for a long time.

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

So that's why Tarasenko has a bum shoulder!!!

Now I gotta dump my Tank jersey.....

 

[Blueston]

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

Sounds like you need a Nathan MacKinnon jersey.

 

[Punished ROR]

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

Please stay away from ROR

 

[BlueOil]

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

so the next time the blues really want to unload a guy, we just have to crowdsource some funding for you to get his jersey.

badabing-badaboom

 

[JoshFromMO]

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

This whole time I thought I cursed Lehtera by getting his jersey his rookie year but you have the longer record of jinxes lol

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

I would have already purchased a Buch jersey if I didn't have a long history of being a jersey curse. I think there is a very good chance that he is the team's 2nd best forward. He was 29th in the NHL in even strength scoring last year and 29th over the last 2 seasons. He's been a 63 point pace player over the last 2 seasons despite being on the Rangers' 2nd PP unit. He was a 72 point pace player last year despite being on the 2nd PP unit. I think he has a real chance of being a point per game guy if he gets a spot on our top PP unit. I think it is more likely than not that he scores at a 70+ point pace while also being on one of our top 2 PK units.

I still can't believe we got him for Blais + a 2nd and then "only" had to pay $5.8M AAV on a 4 year extension. I think that is a fair value contract, but the trade price suggested that the marketplace was nervous about contract negotiations. I'm trying to manage expectations, but this is one of those trades that could be franchise altering.

But again, I'm not buying a Buch jersey because I'm superstitious. Just for fun, here is my jersey history: Halak, Lehtera, Fabbri, and Tarasenko. I have a tendency to target the hipster "I had this jersey before they were big" picks and I went with Lehtera because his passing/vision reminded me of Demitra. Fabbri suffered his first ACL tear 6 weeks after I got his jersey. Real kick in the groin when Tarasenko requested a trade 5 months after I got his jersey. My first non-Blues personalized jersey was a Sabres Hasek jersey that I got shortly before he went to the Red Wings. So that was fun.

Don’t let Ranksu see this, he’ll buy him a Krug jersey

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

I was very pleased with what I saw of Perunovich last night (I only watched about half the game). For me, I'm not at all concerned about him making the opening night roster, so the mistakes don't bug me. I saw the tools of an NHL player at his size last night and vision that was good enough to execute at a speed that's higher than the NCAA level. Last night reinforced my opinion that he could be an NHL player. I thought the good outweighed the bad, which is what I want out of an offensive specialist D man. Nothing about last night convinced me that the good would outweigh the bad against better competition, but it is positive that the good was outweighing the bad vs actual pros.

If he keeps looking like that as more NHL guys get inserted into these lineups then the staff has a decision to make. If he has a poor outing or two then it is easy to send him down. I think logging big minutes in the AHL a bit would be good for him, so my belief is that he has to play too well to cut to avoid that.

I think the decision will be made based on who you are willing to lose in waivers. Unless the Blues make a few minor moves before the season starts, I don't see him sticking. See what he does versus the AHL and logs 25 minutes of ice a game.