ST. LOUIS — Throughout 2022, the St. Louis Blues had many memorable moments from a bitter-cold game to a summer of solidifying the future of the team.
The start of the 2022 season saw the Blues play in the Winter Classic in Minneapolis, Minnesota and continue their strong season into the playoffs. A loss to the eventual Stanley Cup winners ended their season short.
The team made several moves in the summer months, coming back for the 2022-2023 season in October. The Blues continue to have a streaky start to the new season.
But, the team had many highlights and memorable moments throughout the year. 5 On Your Side's Year in Review looks back at the 2022 year for the St. Louis Blues:
Coldest Winter Classic game
On New Year's Day, the St. Louis Blues faced the Minnesota Wild in the 2022 Winter Classic game in Minneapolis.
The forecast leading up to the game saw highs in the negative temperatures and would become the coldest outdoor game in NHL history.
"Not many teams have chances to play there (in a Winter Classic). This is my second time so I'm really looking forward to it, even if it's going to be the same cold as in Siberia," Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko said in a December 2021 press conference.
At puck drop, the temperature was at 8 below zero and became the coldest game in the record books.
In below-freezing temperatures, St. Louis center Jordan Kyrou notched four points, including two goals, in the second period alone.
The Blues won 6-4 and handed the Wild their fifth straight loss at that time.
This was the Blues' second Winter Classic Game, the first coming in 2017 at Busch Stadium. The team won 4-1 against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Pronger to the rafters
The St. Louis Blues raised Chris Pronger's No. 44 to Enterprise Center's rafters this past January.
Pronger came to the Blues In 1995 after a trade with the Hartford Whalers for Brendan Shanahan. He spent nine seasons in St. Louis.
The defenseman gained a reputation as one of the toughest and most talented players in the league at that time. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's MVP in 1999-2000.
On Jan. 17, he joined Al MacInnis (No 2), Bob Gassoff (No. 3), Bob Plager (No. 5), Barclay Plager (No. 8), Brian Sutter (No. 11), Brett Hull (No. 16) and Bernie Federko (No. 24) to have their number retired by the team.
Pronger and his family thanked and showed their appreciation to the fans and St. Louis for the life he had on and off the ice.
Pronger went on to show just how much he appreciated everything when he chugged the rest of his Bud Light on hand that he had teased the crowd with at the end of his speech.
It was a night to remember for the team and for fans seeing his number raised to the rafter and him raising one to the city of St. Louis.
Jon Hamm magic
When the Blues faced the Anaheim Ducks in Anaheim on April 25, magic happened.
Blues superfan, St. Louis native and Hollywood star Jon Hamm visited the Bally Sports Midwest broadcast booth that evening with John Kelly and Dareen Pang in the second period.
In the beginning, Hamm pronounced great fondness for Blues forward Ivan Barbashev and moments later he set up the Blues' first goal of the game to Jordan Kyrou.
Just a short time later, Vladimir Tarasenko scored to tie the game 2-2 and Kelly said: "The magic of Jon Hamm in the booth strikes again!"
It only took another four minutes or so for Ivan Barbashev to get a goal of his own. Two minutes later, Justin Faulk scored the team's fourth goal.
"I literally can't leave at this point," Hamm said.
The Blues would end up winning the game 6-3 and extend their points streak to a franchise-best 16 games in a row at the time.
The magic of Jon Hamm and the on-air commentary from both Kelly and Pang made for some funny moments for fans and the team.
Thomas, Kyrou's eight-year deals
After the team lost in the second round of the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Blues went into the offseason with plans to solidify their future.
On July 13, the St. Louis Blues announced they had signed Robert Thomas to an eight-year, $65 million contract starting with the 2023-2024 season.
Thomas had a breakout year during the 2021-2022 season, playing 72 games and recording 20 goals and 57 assists (77 points), a career-high in all categories.
Two months later on Sept. 13, the Blues announced they had signed Jordan Kyrou the same contract as Thomas, an eight-year, $65 million contract.
Kyrou was third on the team with 27 goals and second on the team with 48 assists in 74 games.
Multiple Blues players will become unrestricted free agents after this season, including Ryan O'Reilly, Ivan Barbashev and Vladimir Tarasenko.
Retro Reverse 2.0
The St. Louis Blues revealed the team's Retro Reverse 2022 jersey in partnership with the National Hockey League and Adidas.
The primarily-gold jersey features white and light-blue strips, the same light blue that is featured on the team's current Heritage jerseys in 2017 and 2022 Winter Classics.
The logo is based on an original prototype dated back to 1966. It was originally drawn by then-General Manager Lynn Patrick and produced by R.J Lieve Athletic Lettering in Chesterfield, according to the St. Louis Blues' press release.
The design was created not long after the NHL awarded St. Louis an expansion franchise with their first season being played in the 1967-68 season.
The team has worn it five times this season since it was revealed. There are two more times to catch it in the 2022 season in January 2023.
As the Blues close out the 2022 year, they look towards 2023 with hope as they manage their on-again, off-again season so far.
