First, for the main UFA’s that I didn’t resign, Maroon and Gunnarsson. I’m currently writing this after game 4 of the Stanley cup finals and Maroon honestly doesn’t look like a factor, his grit and physical play is important for the Blues, but besides that, there really is no need. For next season, with guys like Fabbri, Blais, Sanford, Mac, and most likely Kyrou, room for Pat Maroon is running out. I would be fine if we brought him back next year, but there are younger and more skilled players that I rather see in over him. For Gunnarsson, after resigning Bou, and prospects like Mikkola and Reinke having good years, along with Jake Walman who I’m not giving up all hope on yet, he also might not be needed next year even though I have been impressed with his play this year when he’s healthy. GOALTENDING: I’m not really sure what Binnington will ask for and what the Blues are willing to give. A bridge deal is most likely and there is an uncertain range when it comes to the money, but I think it will be around 3 million. Time for the big elephant in the room, Jake Allen. Should the Blues trade him? Yes. Will trading him be easy? Not at all. Allen carries a cap hit of just over 4 million. Big overpay for a backup goalie that’s inconsistent. Those things bring a guys trade value down. There’s no obvious team that pops up in your head when you try to think of a team that should trade for Allen. If anything, the Blues might have to throw in a little extra value in order for a team to take Allen, without having to retain any salary. The good news is that he only has 2 years left on his contract. Which means it’s possible to move him because whoever gets stuck with him doesn’t have to worry about him long term. I didn’t do any trades in this, especially with Jake Allen because it’s very unknown who would trade for him and what we would get in return. DEFENSE: Let’s start with Bou and Parayko, if healthy, they are our best d-pair and deserve getting top minutes. Jay is under appreciated and I’m glad he got resigned. For the 2nd pair, it’s Petro and whatever left handed dman they want to fill that spot, Dunn, Edmundson, and Gunnarsson(If he gets resigned) have all played with Petro. After that, whoever doesn’t play with Petro will go along with Bortuzzo, who is most likely to have a spot on the 3rd pairing. Del Zotto barely played and is most likely not coming back, same with Jerabek. Mikkola has been compared to Parayko and if given the opportunity, he could be good for St. Louis next year. Reinke played in 2017-2018 but did not see time with the Blues this past season. But he unexpectedly went off this year and I think he could be ready for the NHL. Jake Walman has been in the system with potential for a long time now, but he seems to continue falling down the depth chart. The same can be said with Jordan Schmaltz, who was suppose to be great but that hasn’t quite worked out and he also keeps sliding down the depth chart. Chris Butler has shown more than both of those guys, he was decent in the regular season. FORWARDS: The top 6 forwards should be ROR, Thomas, Tarasenko, Schwartz, Schenn, Perron going into next year. But the 2 lines formed between those 6 are not certain, there will most likely be rotations with them throughout the year. Fabbri: Not even 100% sure he gets resigned, but I hope he does. The whole organization wants him to turn into the star we saw early in his career before his knee exploded, twice. This past season was suppose to be his “Show us what you got” year, but he started off the year injured again, and after that he never really settled into the lineup. What keeps me positive about Fabbri is his skating. Tearing your ACL twice makes people wonder if he’ll still be up to speed. But he has shown he is still aggressive and he still has jump and speed. His skills haven’t been up to par but that’s something you can work on. Skating is more natural, so the fact that he can still do that is nice to see. This offseason is huge for him, he can finally be healthy and have some time off, then he can train and get himself ready for next year, then we shall see what his future holds, if he resigns. Sanford: He excelled the beginning of the year playing with ROR and Perron, he slowed down though and like Fabbri, his spot in the lineup wasn’t always certain. Again, I’m currently writing this after game 4 in the Stanley Cup Finals, and in game 3 and 4, which was the first time he had played since round 1, he showed that he was ready to go and that he wasn’t gonna let guys push him around like Winnipeg did. Berube praises his penalty killing and play in the dzone. Although his puck decisions and physical play are questionable, he does a lot of good things as well. It’s not certain whether or not he gets resigned, but I believe he deserves it and I’d be happy to see him back next year. He needs to get stronger this offseason, if that happens, then even better. Kyrou: he made the team out of training camp this past season but as a guy who didn’t stick with the Blues, that is uncertain every year whether or not he plays. He dominated in the AHL for his rookie season in 2018-2019. He has all the potential, if he makes the team, he fits the 3rd line much more than the 4th line, kind of like Robert Thomas this past year. He’s really skilled and really fast. I believe now is his time. Steen: His tenure with the Blues and “leadership role” which I put in parentheses because all the locker room drama that his name pops up in, assures him a spot on the team next year along with his NTC. Either way though, he fit really well in his new role as a 4th liner. Sunny and Barby: Both of them had breakout years for the Blues, they play on the “4th line,” but they have big roles in this team. Sundqvist sometimes leads Blues forwards in ice time and Barbashev is right there with him, as they kill penalties together and skate on the same lineup. Quite the duo that they have formed. Both are capable of playing on the 3rd line at the minimum and Berube and many more have complete trust in them. Bozak: He has a NMC so he’s also most likely to come back next year, he’s a good role player on the 3rd line, kills penalties, wins face offs, and is on the PP. Blais: hasn’t produced the offense that people hoped for, but he is one of the biggest physical presences on the team, he leads the team in hits many nights and he will go after anyone, he is a good type of player to have on your team. Mac: Similar play style to Blais, he’ll hit you no matter what and we gave him a 1 way contract, which means he will be with the team all year long unless he is put on waivers, which better not happen. POWER PLAY: I definitely think we need to change up the units. PP1 should be ROR, Thomas, Schwartz, Tarasenko and Parayko. Dunn could also slide into Parayko’s spot. On PP2, Bozak is the center, Schenn plays on the wall along with Perron, and Petro and Dunn are both on it because the Blues want both of them out there. Perron is a guy that can also slide down and play the point, in that case, you could put a guy like Kyrou in his spot. Obviously the units will change, but this would look pretty good going into the season. PENALTY KILL: Sunny and Barby go together of course and ROR along with Steen. More forwards will penalty kill obviously. Guys like Sanford, Bozak, Schwartz, etc. That’s all and we still have to wait and see what the Blues do in the offseason, meanwhile we’re still focused on winning it all.
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