The St. Louis Blues enter 2023-24 with a very different look from a year ago, but their two biggest weaknesses from last season remain unchanged: the blueline and the starting goalie.
That’s being harsh and not very nuanced, of course: The defense was awful in 2022-23, but the forwards — particularly one of their high-paid young stars — were a big part of that. Jordan Binnington had his worst stats year by far, but he was also left out to dry on multiple nights, and there were multiple occasions where he gave up four goals and you’d say “but it should’ve been 10.”
Due to self-inflicted contract commitments of Doug Armstrong’s doing, the Blues were not able to overhaul their blueline this summer. The same guys who were scapegoated last season will start the season tonight in Dallas.
Team Defense
Though that fact may not be cause for optimism, a summer of reflection and some changes behind the bench are cause for hope, or at least intrigue:
Mike Van Ryn was let go, and Mike Weber has come in to implement a new approach to defense from behind the bench. While specifics are few, it seems the Blues will generally focus more on protecting “the house” (the inner slot and dot-to-dot area where high-danger scoring chances are born) and less on pursuing battles into each corner.
Probably more important than anything else is a full-team, five-man-unit buy-in from the whole team. The free-flowing 1980s were great, but in 2023 it should not be a surprise for a player to be expected to backcheck and participate in the five-man defensive concept.
Jordan Kyrou was served loud notice that he has to be defensively responsible. Pick any interview this summer, and you’ve got Armstrong or Craig Berube noting how Kyrou needs to mature in his game. The points are great, but they mean nothing if you’re bleeding goals against. When considering Kyrou’s attention to defense, it’s hard not to think back to the symbolic, archetypical case: When he was caught lamely reaching, twice, in the dying seconds as the Avalanche spoiled an impressive comeback to eliminate the Blues in Game 6 of 2022.
If/when Binnington falters, a young, good goalie will back him up. Thomas Greiss had his time in the NHL — a single-handed defeat of the Panthers in Round 1 in 2016 is a highlight — but by the end he was a shell of his former self. Late-career Tom Barasso, Manny Legace on fumes, take your pick. Greiss wasn’t good in Detroit and he was worse here. So replacing him with the up-and-coming Joel Hofer should provide insurance and an extra couple of wins or more.
The defense and everyone knows they need to be better. While it’s a poor plan for victory to say, “Same guys go at it, just be better this time,” there is nonetheless the pride element. There’s the regression element. The bounce-back element. Everyone is a year older, true, but they are also humbled coming off a terrible season — as opposed to following a season where they pushed the Cup champs close to the brink, then entering last season feeling like they had another Cup run in them.
Torey Krug needs health more than he needs a sports psychologist, but hopefully if he gets some of the former he can get closer to the player the Blues signed. Colton Parayko has had his ups and downs — and a significant back injury that was rehabbed rather than operated on, don’t forget — but if he can be a dominant shutdown guy against top opponents then all will be forgiven.
Forwards
Meanwhile, up front they look very different from a year ago:
- Ryan O’Reilly is gone, and no longer has to figure out how to introduce Kyrou to his own zone. David Perron is still gone, but it no longer feels so fresh and raw.
- Ivan Barbashev is gone (and rich!), but fellow 2019 grinders Sammy Blais and Oskar Sundqvist are back and ready to smash bodies.
- Robert Thomas is your #1 center, Brayden Schenn is your captain, and Kevin Hayes is your “good in the room” plus offense guy at 3C.
- Jakub Vrana and Kasperi Kapanen, reclamations after last season was already a lost cause, will try to recreate their late-season magic during a period when it matters most. We shall see.
Starting at 7 p.m. tonight in Dallas.