ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Blues will look to extend their winning streak to five games on Tuesday when they face the Chicago Blackhawks at Enterprise Center.
Just a few seasons back, this would have been the talk of the town.
Now, things are a bit different. While both fan bases still live for the rivalry, there’s not as much hype before the Central Division showdown with the Blackhawks in another rebuild year.
The Blues enter the game at first place in the Central Division with 82 points, while the Blackhawks sit at last place in the division with 62 points.
The main focus on Tuesday was determining what the next steps are following the cut-off of the 2020 NHL Trade Deadline.
St. Louis Blues General Manager Doug Armstrong made it clear that the team is confident with its roster.
The Blues sat silent Monday after acquiring defenseman Marco Scandella from the Montreal Canadiens a week prior.
Scandella became a necessary addition after Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester suffered a cardiac episode leading to him being placed on the long-term injured reserve. It was a situational need.
The original conversation surrounded the Blues' potential desire for a top-six forward.
Those conversations died once it became clear there was no way to make things work within the salary cap space if Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko would return to the lineup in the near future.
“We had conversations with teams, but nothing really transpired,” said Armstrong. “We’re excited about the group that we have. We’re obviously excited about Vladi coming back. The whole NHL deals on the salary cap situation. We’ve been pushing the upper limits of that cap all year with our, with being an LTI (long-term injury) when Vladi went, and we’ll end the season in LTI with Jay Bouwmeester on it.”
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Would the Blues have made a bigger push to acquire a top-six forward if Tarasenko wasn’t going to be ready to play before the end of the regular season? Most likely, yes.
It also helped that the Blues went on a four-game win streak leading up to the deadline date, which confirmed what the current roster is capable of after five consecutive losses.
“A hockey trade that makes you better is something that you’re always looking at doing,” said Armstrong. “But also, I think when you’re in a situation like ours, where how we finished last season, how we finished, how we’ve played this year. I think the chemistry comes into the equation a little bit more than if you’re fighting for that last playoff spot, or if you’re out, or you’re in that quagmire at the bottom. You’re willing to disrupt chemistry to take a leap to move forward. So, we did talk hockey trades, but I didn’t see anything that made us significantly better to jeopardize any chemistry issues that we had.”
Perhaps there also would’ve been a much larger emphasis to look for a key scorer or productive depth piece if younger players like Zach Sanford and Jordan Kyrou weren’t currently stepping up to the plate and playing significant roles in games, playing a part in that core group of chemistry.
After barely being able to crack the lineup in October, Sanford played in a top-six position for weeks as he stood on his head to produce the only offense for the Blues in a streak of games.
Sanford scored three goals in the first two months of the regular season and went on to score 10 more from Jan. 11 to Feb. 15.
While Blues head coach Craig Berube continues to shake up the lines on a nightly basis, it’s clear that the team looks at Sanford much differently than they did at the start of the year.
The Blues may have found themselves a new top-six forward without even having to search around the market.
“Sanford has played his way into that equation whether it was with O’Reilly and Perron or different players now,” said Armstrong. “Craig has switched his lines up a little bit right now. But we’re seeing strong play, not only the goal scoring, but away from the puck. A more determined player. Someone that we’re, Craig is finding the comfort level to count on deeper into games and in different situations.”
But Sanford hasn’t been the only upcoming piece to the puzzle. Blues forward Jordan Kyrou has started to showcase his ability to play as a mature gamer in the league.
The 21-year-old struggled to keep things simple on the ice after being pulled up from the AHL, which resulted in Berube benching him for a handful of games to learn from a different perspective.
Since being immersed back into the lineup, Kyrou has scored two goals and four points. Both goals coming in back-to-back games on Friday and Sunday.
“I think Jordan Kyrou is a, reflects how we’ve treated most of our younger players,” said Armstrong. “In a competitive market when you’re trying to develop, but also win. Winning trumps development in our organization at this particular time.”
While Kyrou hasn’t played as a solidified top-six forward in games, his impact has been felt. If this is a “depth” player, then it’s the best kind to have. Kyrou is destined to be a standout forward.
“Jordan has done a lot of work with our assistant coaches, and video,” said Armstrong. “He’s also working on the ice. He is creating a comfort level with the coach to play him deeper into games. I saw that in the last game. He played nine minutes the game before, and in the last one it was up to 12. Some nights it might get to 15, and some nights it might be at six. I think what Jordan is finding now is just the commitment that you need to make on a day-to-day basis to prepare yourself.”
While Kyrou has a lot to learn before Berube places full confidence in his abilities, his teammates are grateful for what he’s done so far.
“It’s huge,” said Blues forward Ryan O’Reilly. “Definitely look at both of his goals, they’re things that just sparked us and gave us a huge push over the team. Having him be able to do that is a massive thing for our group and gives us that confidence and that offensive spark that we need.”
The question now becomes, “When will Tarasenko return?”
“Our doctors have been through this,” said Armstrong. “We’ve had a number of players who have had this type of surgery. We’re not going to thrust him into a situation where he’s not capable of defending himself in a corner, in a puck battle. But they are pro athletes and they want to play. He’s a key piece of our franchise moving forward. So, whether it be a playoff game or getting him back in the lineup, it’s not gonna happen until we’re 100% comfortable that he’s going to be able to protect himself in those situations.”
Based on comments from the team, the Blues sound optimistic in Tarasenko returning to the lineup before the regular season ends. He was originally set to be re-evaluated the first week of April. If all goes as planned, this time table may move up slightly.
“I would certainly like to see him get into more than three or four (games),” said Armstrong. “He affects so many different parts of our team. Not only our five-on-five play, but we have a power play that’s been consistently in the top five. It might be third or in that area now, too. Vladi affects that.”
As of now, the time table is still the same in stone.
The Central Division remains tight with the Colorado Avalanche sitting at second, just three points behind the Blues with 79 points. Dallas sits in third with 78 points.
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