1 week Ago
ST. LOUIS — From a “nothing can go wrong” streak to a sudden slump, the St. Louis Blues have found themselves in a drama-filled finish to the NHL season.
When the Edmonton Oilers scored with 20 seconds left Wednesday night, handing the Blues a 4-3 defeat and their first back-to-back regulation losses since late January, fans started doing the math again on what it will take to get into the playoffs. Advertisement The team will be back on the ice against the Seattle Kraken Saturday at 9 p.m.
CT, followed by the regular-season finale against Utah Tuesday at Enterprise Center. “We’ve shown throughout here ever since 4 Nations (Face-off) that we’re a team that’s just going to keep coming,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said after Wednesday’s loss. “I love that about our group.
” Final from Edmonton. #stlblues pic.twitter.
com/wlg8ilP0Di — St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) April 10, 2025 The loss of forward Dylan Holloway to a lower-body injury has rightly raised more concern. The Blues are still listing him as week-to-week, but there’s a strong possibility he could miss significant time.
So for those of you who’ve read part 1 of the mailbag and are just sitting back until Saturday to see how the Blues respond, here’s part 2 with the remainder of your questions . (Note: Some questions have been lightly edited for length and clarity.) With this massive turnaround, what do you think GM Doug Armstrong does to improve the team in the offseason? Has this huge run changed much? — Joshua P.
The run has been very good for the franchise, but it shouldn’t mask things that were evident before the Blues put themselves back into the playoff picture. They have some aging players on the blue line whose contracts don’t expire this offseason (with the exception of Ryan Suter). So, to me, addressing what to do with Nick Leddy and Justin Faulk should be a priority, and if you’re attempting to move them, how are you replacing them? With Tyler Tucker and Matthew Kessel, or are you going outside the organization? Armstrong will probably need another scorer at some point, but with Zack Bolduc making great progress and Jimmy Snuggerud in the fold, perhaps making a major free-agent signing or big trade gets put on hold until the GM knows what he has in them.
Advertisement Do you think this core has solidified itself? — John F. The difficulty in answering this question: who in the core are we talking about? Are we talking about captain Brayden Schenn? There were discussions about moving him, and he wanted to stay. Whether they re-engage those conversations again this summer remains to be seen, and what will Schenn, whose full no-trade clause becomes a 15-team no-trade clause July 1, want to do? After Schenn, who’s next? Jordan Kyrou? His full no-trade clause kicks in July 1, so they will need to decide if they’re fully committed to him.
After those two, I don’t know who else is in the conversation. I don’t think they’re trading Holloway, Robert Thomas, Pavel Buchnevich, Jake Neighbours, Colton Parayko or Philip Broberg — players I view as part of the core. For the second time this season.
.. 🔥 #stlblues pic.
twitter.com/T9A8tunIpX — St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) April 10, 2025 What do you think the Blues will do regarding the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Mitch Marner? — Terry H.
Marner would be an incredible fit for the Blues. He’d have to change his number because No. 16 is in the rafters at Enterprise Center, but as I’ve written before, Marner playing alongside Thomas, his old junior teammate, might lead to some magic like back in the day with Brett Hull.
The issue is Marner is going to get paid . He will be the premier UFA this offseason if unsigned by the Leafs, and the cost could be $14 million AAV . Could the Blues afford the winger, who turns 28 in May? He’d be quite the addition, but it takes two parties.
If he’s somehow interested, they would have to be. With the rising salary cap, how likely is it that the Blues will spend to, or near, the ceiling? — Larry A. The Blues will want to understand the full landscape of league economics going forward before ownership can feel comfortable with what type of commitment they put forth.
There will be adjustments to revenue sharing and other questions the group will have to discuss before deciding on player spending. Advertisement The cap is projected to be $95.5 million in 2025-26, so a jump of $7.
5 million from this season. According to PuckPedia, the Blues have a cap hit of $88.4 million next season, leaving about $7.
1 million in cap space at the moment. So even if they don’t spend to the cap, they’ll likely be close. How many playoff games do the Blues need to have in order to refill Tom Stillman’s coffers? I want a healthy ownership group — what will it take? — John B.
To my knowledge, ownership is in healthy shape. I have to think Stillman and Co. were prepared for the possibility of missing the playoffs, so the potential extra income would be much welcomed.
The Blues net about $1.5 million per home playoff game and also receive TV revenue from the road games. The team doesn’t plan its season budget with the playoff money in mind, so it’s all additional.
The players’ salaries are also paid during the regular season, not the playoffs, so that adds to the windfall, too. If the Blues can stay competitive and continue to make postseason appearances during what could have been an extended retool, or even rebuild, the ownership group should be fine. The more pressing concern would be what percentage of teams around the league are spending to the increasing cap, and if the Blues keep up with those clubs.
Given that GM-in-waiting Alexander Steen is going to inherit whatever decisions are made this summer, is he going to have more input this offseason about what happens? — Jeremy B. Armstrong, who will hand off the GM duties to Steen after the 2025-26 season, is calling the shots and Steen is soaking it all in. But a lot of the daily decisions have long-term implications, which will affect what Steen can do when he takes over.
So, he’s definitely involved in the day-to-day and will have input every step of the way until the transition. Advertisement Here’s my over/under on eight-year contract extensions for Broberg ($6.5 million AAV) and Holloway ($7.
5 million AAV). What do you think? — Dana D. I’m of the belief that Broberg might have a little higher AAV than Holloway.
I don’t know that Broberg will get what the Washington Capitals gave Jakob Chychrun in March with an eight-year, $72 million contract ($9 million AAV). But on a long-term deal, I’d venture to say he’ll be closer to $9 million than $6.5 million.
Holloway is a little tougher to predict because everyone can see he’s going to be a good player for a long time, but when it comes to offensive numbers and young players, they usually have to prove it for a couple of years. Likewise, on a long-term deal, I believe he’d want at least $7.5 million AAV and maybe more.
What are the odds Broberg or Holloway will want to take a bridge deal? — Kyle H. I wouldn’t think so because both will want to capitalize on solid seasons, and if they aren’t re-signed, they’ll be restricted free agents with arbitration rights after the 2025-26 season and free to do the whole offer-sheet thing again. Do you know if there have been talks about a contract extension for Joel Hofer, and if so, what is the ballpark? — Bill B.
Armstrong went on a bit of a signing spree, getting extensions done for Neighbours, Kessel and Tucker, so it would make sense that he’s had talks with Hofer’s camp. They either couldn’t find something both sides liked, or they decided to put talks off for a bit. I wrote a piece with colleague Shayna Goldman in February that touched on Hofer’s situation, and the comp she came up with was Montreal’s Sam Montembeault, who signed a three-year, $9.
45 million contract ($3.15 million AAV) in December 2023. That might be a little rich, as Montembeault is four years older at 28 and the deal bought an unrestricted year.
But Hofer has made 30-plus appearances the past two seasons and has arbitration rights this offseason, so he’s got some leverage. Advertisement Do we bring back Radek Faksa? If so, at what price? — Bill B. Faksa has been good, but do the Blues feel like they have room for him? Could Dalibor Dvorsky be their third-line center next season, pushing Oskar Sundqvist down to Faksa’s spot on the fourth line? Faksa’s AAV this season is $3.
25 million, so if they can bring him back for that or a little less, he’d be good to have as depth. Has there been any updates on Torey Krug’s injury? — Michael M. I’ve been told that Krug’s career is likely over, but I hope to confirm that with him at some point and see how he’s doing.
Who do you see as the Blues’ seven defensemen in 2025-26? — Scott F. Cam Fowler – Colton Parayko Philip Broberg – Free agent/trade Ryan Suter – Tyler Tucker Potentially moved: Justin Faulk, Nick Leddy Extra: Matthew Kessel could watch this all night long pic.twitter.
com/ayMk6rS5Rr — St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) April 10, 2025 Who is the next Blues prospect to crack the roster? — Bill B. Dylan Peterson, the Blues’ 2020 third-round pick who’s playing in AHL Springfield.
He’s currently injured, but when in the lineup, the 6-foot-4, 203-pound forward is the type of player the Blues love — straight lines, finishes checks, sells out every shift and a nose for the net. He doesn’t have the hands you hope for, but can still be a solid NHL player. We’ve had plenty to salivate over with the wingers coming up in the system, but what about the defensive prospects? Who are comparables for Lukas Fischer, Leo Loof and Theo Lindstein? — Chris T.
The Athletic has written several articles on a few of these prospects. In Scott Wheeler’s 2025 prospect pool rankings , in which the Blues were No. 14, he gave Fischer some high praise: “He defends well, he’s tough and he’s really quite mobile — and an excellent natural athlete in several ways.
” Advertisement Loof is also playing in AHL Springfield this season, and there are some attributes to like, but he is still really raw. Lindstein continues to make good strides, and the Blues expect him to be in the mix in about two years. Tim Taylor, who runs the player development department, says Lindstein can be a guy who shuts down opponents “not with his physical play, but with his speed.
” Adam Jiricek seems to be injured often. Are there growing concerns within the organization? — John F. Yes, it’s been a difficult season for the Blues’ 2024 first-round pick (No.
16 overall). The defenseman is playing with the OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs and has been in and out of the lineup a few times. After a couple of knee injuries, the team has kept him out for precautionary reasons, but whether it’s serious or precaution, he has yet to get much traction on his career.
With Colin Ralph entering the transfer portal, where do you expect he will be playing next season? — Mike S. After one season at St. Cloud State, the Blues’ second-round pick (No.
48 overall) last season is headed to Michigan State University. The 6-foot-5, 227-pound left-shot defenseman, who played for gold-medal-winning Team USA at this year’s World Juniors, will have three years of eligibility with the Spartans. Michigan State adds one of the top defensemen from the portal in St.
Louis Blues second-rounder Colin Ralph, who played his freshman season at St. Cloud State. Full portal updates: https://t.
co/tfQEpKJYJW — Brad Elliott Schlossman (@SchlossmanGF) April 5, 2025 Can you update us on the progress of Russian prospects Arseni Koromyslov, Ivan Vorobyov, Nikita Susuyev and Matvei Korotky. Any insight on a path for them to come to North America? — Chris B. Admittedly, I solicited Wheeler’s help on this one.
He says Susuyev and Vorobyov’s Russian contracts expire in May, Koromyslov’s in 2025 and Korotky’s in 2027. Wheeler doesn’t view Susuyev and Vorobyov as NHL prospects “with much consequence.” Koromyslov bounced between three KHL clubs this season, but has played well in the playoffs.
Of the four, Wheeler likes Korotky, who was one of the top players in the MHL and has contributed in a limited role in the KHL. Advertisement Zach Dean has been out almost all year. Any update? — Kevin S.
Dean suffered a lower-body injury early in the season, and after returning to the lineup in January, he had a setback related to it. He’s been limited to just nine games and is still out of the lineup. (Photo of Mitch Marner against the Blues in November: Jeff Curry / Imagn Images).
