Previous Grading the Blues Articles

Goaltenders
- Jaroslav Halak -
- Brian Elliott -
Forwards
- Matt D’Agostini -

Prior to 2011-12

Kris Russell emerged on the NHL scene in 2007-08 when he played in 67 games for Columbus. He appeared in 276 games for the Blue Jackets between 2007-08 and 2010-11, scoring 16 goals and 60 assists. Following the 2009-10 season Columbus signed Russell to a three-year, $3.9 million contract.

Regular Season

Russell started the 2011-12 season with Columbus before being involved in a trade that sent him to St. Louis in exchange for fellow defenseman Nikita Nikitin. Russell played in just 12 games for the Blue Jackets prior to the trade, scoring two goals and one assist. It’s tough to analyze his play there further as all of us Blues fans were mostly focused on the uninspired effort the Blues had been putting forth under Davis Payne.

Shortly after Ken Hitchcock was named the new coach of the Blues the team pulled the trigger on a trade to land Russell. Hitchcock was familiar with Russell thanks to his extensive time with Columbus and was so impressed with the defender that he played a role in bringing him to St. Louis.

Russell went on to play in 43 games for the St. Louis Blues, notching four goals and five assists. Russell’s speed became an additional weapon for the Blues on what was already a pretty potent blue line.

However, Russell’s season wasn’t without its faults. He suffered a groin injury in December as well as a concussion in February which forced him to miss time. He also scored just one goal over his last 34 games of the year. It’s possible that he never fully recovered either from his groin injury or concussion but that’s impossible to say with any degree of certainty.

Final numbers: 55 games – 6 goals, 6 assists (12 points) with a +12.

Regular season grade: B

Summarized: Russell was impressive upon arriving in St. Louis but a couple of injuries cut his season short. Russell showed plenty of offensive talent as well as solid defensive play, using his speed to help him make up for his lack of size and strength. Russell rarely made bad passes and rarely lost the puck in his own zone. He was consistently solid which is really all that fans could ask for. At age 25, Russell showed experience and poise that was above his years.

Playoffs

Russell’s play in the playoffs wasn’t bad. It wasn’t great but it certainly wasn’t as poor as some of his teammates. As a matter a fact, Russell was one of few St. Louis Blues skaters that actually found some success against the Los Angeles Kings, recording two assists.

Final numbers: 9 games – 0 goals, 3 assists (3 points) with a +3 rating.

Playoff grade: B

Summarized: Russell’s play in the playoffs closely mimicked his play during the regular season. He wasn’t a shining star but at the same time he wasn’t a glaring weakness. His play was constant and predictable. Where his teammates were making mistakes, Russell played a sharp and solid game. He sacrificed his body, blocking 19 shots over the course of the team’s playoff run. All in all, there was no reason to be disappointed with Russell’s playoff effort.

Looking Forward

The Blues have arguably one of the best young defensive units in the NHL. However, there will be some changes made over the summer as the team contemplates what to do with Barrett Jackman and Carlo Colaiacovo. Russell is signed through 2012-13 but will be up for a new contract after the year expires. His role shouldn’t change much in 2011-12 but his partner at defense might depending what the Blues decide to do with free agency. If he is able to stay healthy in 2012-13 and play like he did when healthy in 2011-12, don’t be surprised to see a new contract offered Russell’s way during the 2012-13 campaign.

Previous Grading the Blues Articles

- Jaroslav Halak -
- Brian Elliott -

Prior to 2011-12

D’Agostini was one of the best stories for the Blues in the 2010-11 season. Thanks to injuries in the lineup, D’Agostini got plenty of top line minutes in 2010-11 which allowed him to display some of his offensive prowess. He notched 21 goals and 25 assists, both of which were new personal bests. He was easily the best value for the Blues which earned him a new two-year, $3.3 million contract prior to 2011-12.

Regular Season

Expectations weren’t enormous for D’Agostini in 2011-12 but fans were expecting him to be a contributor to the team’s offensive scheme. Things started out fairly well for D’Agostini in the year’s first month where he tallied four goals and two assists. At the time it appeared he was on track to at the very least match his production from 2010-11 despite not having a role on the team’s top scoring lines.

Unfortunately, October was D’Agostini’s best month of the season.

After scoring four times in his first 11 games, D’Agostini was only able to score five times over his next 38 games. To be fair, D’Agostini did suffer from a concussion during the year and upon returning he never really looked like the player we saw in 2010-11.

In 55 games D’Agostini rarely looked like a true threat on the ice. He showed glimpses of his 2010-11 talent but he wasn’t able to sustain pressure consistently. He saw fewer offensive chances due to his role on the team’s third line but still wasn’t able to capitalize even when offered an expanded opportunity.

Final numbers: 55 games – 9 goals, 9 assists (18 points) with a +12.

Regular season grade: C

Summarized: Injuries were a factor in D’Agostini’s 2011-12 season but the fact remains that when he was on the ice he rarely looked like the weapon he was in 2010-11. It’s unclear whether D’Agostini was ever truly in form after the season’s first month or after his concussion. Unfortunately, you can’t give D’Agostini a pass due to his injury as he still appeared in 55 games this season and still had numerous opportunities that ultimately were squandered.

Playoffs

D’Agostini only played in four playoff games for the Blues, one against the San Jose Sharks and three against the Los Angeles Kings. For the most part, D’Agostini’s playoff run mimicked his regular season form. Outside of one moment of pure brilliance, a nice snipe in the team’s 5-2 loss against LA, D’Agostini was quiet. It’s tough to analyze D’Agostini’s playoff form as the entire St. Louis roster was held in check by LA’s formidable defense.

Final numbers: 4 games – 1 goal, 0 assists (1 points) with an Even plus/minus.

Playoff grade: B-

Summarized: D’Agostini was activated in the playoffs in the hopes that he might bring a bit more of an offensive spark to the team’s quiet offense. His play in the playoffs perfectly summarized his year as a whole – one moment of brilliance lost in a sea of uninspired efforts. His snipe on Jonathan Quick was brilliant. Unfortunately, this was the only play made by D’Agostini that lingers in the minds of Blues fans.

Looking Forward

D’Agostini is under contract for 2012-13 in the second year of his two-year, $3.3 million deal. It’s safe to say that he did little in 2011-12 to justify the raise he earned after a strong 2010-11 season. In the final year of his contract, D’Agostini will need another big effort if he hopes to land a new contract with the St. Louis Blues on a roster that could see plenty of change in 2012-13. It’s also critical that he is able to stay healthy throughout the season. In 2012-13 he likely will again spend time on the team’s third line but will need to bring an improved overall effort if he hopes to find additional playing time or a new deal.

Since the event is scheduled for the 28th of July, the agenda is pretty tentative. However, below is a list of some of the fun that will be had.

- 12noon-4:30pm Central Division Tweetup/Fan Fest – Buffalo Wild Wings – Grandview
– Raffles all afternoon to benefit the five Central Division teams charitable Foundations
– NHL Alumni Assoc sending autographed memorabilia for raffle.
– Slap Shot Radio (Nashville) to do live broadcast from the Tweetup
– Music provided by Columbus Blue Jackets in-arena DJ, Nick Johnson
– We will also being showing videos from each of the teams Foundations
- 6pm – ??? The RBar (Arena District) – More raffles and casual festivities throughout the evening.

That’s just a sample of what’s in store. More details and information will be released as we draw closer to July.

I’m not sure if I’ll be able to attend but I sincerely hope that the St. Louis Blues will have a decent showing in Columbus. Don’t use Twitter? No worries. The event is a chance for fans to come together, talk hockey and complain about how boring the summer months have been without their favorite team in action.

For more information, visit the Central Division Tweet Up Facebook page.

An article out of the Edmonton Journal reports that Blues are looking for a top-two defenseman that they can pair with Alex Pietrangelo. This report mentions that several scouts believe the Blues would be willing to trade either T.J. Oshie or David Perron in order to secure a quality partner for Alex Pietrangelo. It’s important not to completely take this report as fact but it is worth noting that this sort of speculation has more credibility than most.

A few points to take away from this article:

- The Blues want to use Kevin Shattenkirk in their second pairing. This makes sense as both Pietrangelo and Shattenkirk shoot from the right side and for the fact that you’d ideally like to spread your wealth out offensively.

- Does this mean Barret Jackman is on his way out? Not necessarily though it is a possibility and it does indicate that the Blues will be shaking things up defensively. If Jackman will accept a lower offer to stay in St. Louis you can bet the Blues would retain him.

- Does this mean Carlo Colaiacovo is on his way out? It certainly seems that way. The fact Colaiacovo was benched in favor of Ian Cole in the team’s decisive Game 4 against Los Angeles speaks volumes.

- Hypothetically, what might the Blues land if they dangled Oshie or Perron out there? Truthfully, any answer to that question is a guess. It’s tough to predict which teams would be willing to trade and which players might be on the block. That being said, the Blues should be able to get a solid return on either Oshie or Perron.

There you have it – a little trade speculation for your Sunday. Don’t preach the Edmonton Journal’s article as fact but don’t dismiss it either. A trade for a quality defenseman would make a lot of sense. The Blues could theoretically move Perron or Oshie if Vladmimir Tarasenko decides to play for the Blues in 2012-13, and proves he can compete in the NHL.

What do you think, Blues fans?

Previous Grading the Blues Articles

- Jaroslav Halak -

Prior to 2011-12

The St. Louis Blues signed Brian Elliott to a one-year, $600,000 contract prior to the 2011-12 season in the hopes that Elliott would compete with Peoria netminder Ben Bishop for the #2 job behind Jaroslav Halak. The 2011-12 preseason saw both Elliott and Bishop play well but ultimately Elliott won the role due to his previous NHL experience he had with Colorado and Ottawa.

For Elliott, this deal with the Blues was a chance to put his career back on track. He found some success in 2009-10 with Ottawa (29-18-4 with a 2.57 GAA) but saw his career spiral downward in 2010-11 when he struggled with the Senators (13-19-8 with a 3.19 GAA) before being dealt to Colorado where things only got worse (2-8-1 with a 3.83GAA).

Regular Season

Elliott was called on early in the year after the Blues came out of the gate sluggish and Jaroslav Halak turned in several unimpressive performances in net. Elliott rose to the challenge, giving the Blues some stability in what was ultimately a rocky October for the club as a whole.

When Ken Hitchcock was brought in Elliott and his teammates found a new gear (Warning – you’ll be hearing this a lot). For Elliott this meant playing some of the best hockey of his life which included a month of November where he won all six of the games he started.

The rest of the year played out with Halak and Elliott splitting time. When one went on a hot streak the other would try to best it. The end result was two goaltenders pushing the other forward, causing both men to have some of the best numbers in the NHL.

Elliott never sputtered out. His hot streak wasn’t just a streak as it lasted for the duration of the 2011-12 regular season. He had some rocky starts but for the most part, he came to play each and every time he took the ice. March even saw Elliott string together three consecutive shutouts.

Elliott’s season was truly remarkable. He was signed by the Blues merely to compete for the #2 job – a job that most thought would end up with Ben Bishop. Instead, he went on to be the team’s only All-Star. The icing on the cake? Elliott led the NHL in both goals against average as well as save percentage. Statistically, Elliott had some of the best, if not the best, numbers in the NHL all season long and gave the Blues a fearsome 1-2 punch in net. His hard work earned him a new two-year deal worth $3.6 million.

Final numbers: 23-10-4 with a 1.56 GAA and a save percentage of .940%.

Regular season grade: A+

Summarized: Elliott’s grade is pretty easy to calculate. Combine low expectations and an even lower salary with the NHL’s best GAA and save percentage and the result is an “A+”. Elliott will likely be the only “A+” on the St. Louis roster but it is rightfully deserved. He bests Halak’s grade of an “A” simply because of expectations. Elliott had almost no expectations. He came in with a deal that would allow him to play in Peoria if Bishop won the job in the preseason. To give you some perspective, Elliott’s $600,000 contract was the exact same as Chris Porter’s. Elliott put up numbers that bested goaltenders making 10 times as much as he was. He wasn’t only extremely valuable on the ice but he was also one of the best values the Blues have had financially in recent memory.

Playoffs

This section is tough to analyze. The knee-jerk reaction is to state Elliott’s postseason was a disaster based on his poor effort in Game 3 against Los Angeles. However, we must evaluate his play in the playoffs as a whole in an attempt to see what went wrong and to see just how much blame he is responsible for.

Elliott came in to relieve an injured Jaroslav Halak in the second period of Game 2 in the first round against San Jose. He played great in relief – a feat that is much tougher than you or I give credit for. It’s not easy to flip the switch mentally in order to go from casually observing on the bench to being the last line of defense.

The first round ended with Elliott only allowing five goals in 219 minutes. He stopped 93 of the 98 shots he faced.

The second round was ugly but it’s important not to place all the blame on Elliott’s shoulders. Game 3 was something we would all like to forget but let’s not forget how Elliott was hung out to dry in Game 1 and Game 2. At the very least we can say Elliott was trying his best in Game 1 and Game 2 – a sentiment that can not be used on the majority of other players on the roster. LA’s forwards went unchallenged, allowing numerous uncontested shots on Elliott’s net. Can we really blame Elliott for the 2-on-1 goals and short-handed goals?

Game 3 is a different story. That one we can pin on Elliott. He had a bad game at the most inopportune moment. The pressure was at its highest and Elliott couldn’t handle the added weight. It’s safe to say that the announcement of Halak being out for the rest of the second round prior to Game 3 didn’t relieve any of the stress that was mounting on Elliott. It was then that Elliott knew it was all on him and him alone. Unfortunately he couldn’t complete the storybook season, suddenly looking extremely vulnerable in Game 3.

Final numbers: 3-4 with a 2.38 GAA and a save percentage of .904%.

Playoff grade: B-

Summarized: Elliott’s playoff grade isn’t lower because his teammates were at fault for several of the goals in the second round. It’s unfair to blame Elliott for all the goals he allowed as the St. Louis defenseman were repeatedly in poor positions and repeatedly stood and watched the puck rather than jumping in and making a play. No power play unit should allow the opposition’s penalty kill to have several quality short-handed opportunities. The successes of the first round must also be recognized. Elliott made some big, timely saves that caused the series to look a bit more lopsided than it actually was.

Elliott’s grade isn’t higher because of Game 3. They say you can measure a man by how well he performs under pressure. For Elliot, the pressure was just too much and it resulted in a few soft goals in a critical game for the St. Louis Blues. This time he was at fault, allowing savable pucks to squeak by into the net. The Blues needed Elliott to be at his best and he simply failed to give the team a fighting chance.

Looking Forward

Elliott will be back for 2012-13 and 2013-14 thanks to a two-year deal he signed during the regular season. He will again be paired with Jaroslav Halak as the two men both have contracts that run over the course of the next two seasons.

Realistically, we saw the best possible scenario out of Elliott in 2011-12. While it’s possible, it’s unlikely that he will once again lead the NHL in GAA and save percentage. Ideally, the Blues should hope they have a Brian Elliott that is focused and still striving to put the earlier struggles he had in his career behind him. They should hope that both Elliott and Halak can remain healthy as they clearly struggle when the partnership isn’t in place. They should hope that the unfathomable story that has been Brian Elliott’s run with the Blues still has some magic left in the years to come.

Prior to 2011-12

Heading into 2011-12 we knew the season would be a pivotal one for Jaroslav Halak. The previous year saw Halak post fairly mediocre numbers in the first year of his four-year, $15 million contract. Fans were uneasy, expecting Halak to make a bigger splash upon arriving in St. Louis. His second year, the 2011-12 season, would be a better indicator of whether the Blues got a good netminder for their money or overpaid based on Halak’s previous playoff success.

Regular Season

Things started out pretty bumpy for Halak. This isn’t to say he was bad but it is to say that Halak, and his teammates, all were playing in a pretty low gear under Davis Payne.

October was a month to forget for the St. Louis Blues and it was an especially forgettable one for Halak. In six games Halak went 1-5-0, allowing 20 goals on just 127 shots. The Blues needed a boost. Halak needed a boost. Their prayers were answered in the form of two rather unlikely sources – Ken Hitchcock and Brian Elliott.

We saw Halak take his game to a new level once Hitchcock took over in St. Louis. This sentiment is true for the entire St. Louis roster but it is especially true for Halak who followed up an ugly October with an improved November and December.

Halak’s season continued to improve as the year wore on. Pushed by a suddenly steady and reliable Brian Elliott, Halak knew that in order to see time between the pipes he would have to raise his game. The two pushed each other all season long which resulted in the Blues featuring arguably the best goaltending duo in the league. The pair combined to allow the fewest goals of any team in the NHL.

Things all came together for Halak in the month of January. He won seven of the eight games he played in which included a streak where he won seven consecutive starts. Halak allowed just 11 goals on 203 shots. His January featured three shutouts. It’s safe to say Halak had turned a corner on his slow start.

This success continued through February and the early stages of March before slowly evaporating at the end of March as the Blues struggled to close the year out.

Final numbers: 26-12-7 with a 1.97 GAA and a save percentage of .926%.

Regular season grade: A

Summarized – Halak entered the year with a ton of pressure after a mediocre first season with the Blues. The Lokomotiv plane crash hit Halak close to home and likely played a role in his fairly poor first stages of the season. It’s easy to empathize with Halak as the crash claimed the lives of some of his friends, haunting Halak’s mind as he tried to stay focused on the games at hand. As time passed and Hitchcock’s new approach took hold, Halak benefited from the improved defense in front of him and elevated his personal game to the best level we have seen in St. Louis. Halak quieted the concerns about 2010-11 with a tremendous 2011-12, giving hope that his four-year contract will ultimately be a bargain.

Playoffs

Jaroslav Halak’s 2012 playoff run was pretty brief. He played 104 minutes in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs before Barret Jackman inadvertently collided into him, causing an ankle injury on the St. Louis netminder that sidelined him for the remainder of the team’s run. Halak earned the loss in Game 1 but picked up the win in Game 2 despite only playing 24 minutes.

Final numbers: 1-1 with a 1.72 GAA and a save percentage of .935%.

Playoff grade: N/A

Summarized – Ultimately Jaroslav Halak’s exposure in the playoffs was too brief to grade accurately. He played in just over one playoff game which is too small of a sample to draw any solid conclusions from. That being said, Halak’s play in Game 1 was mostly solid aside from some moments of uncertainty as the game approached the end of the third period and ultimately concluded in overtime. As the pressure mounted Halak looked a bit more shaky. These impressions shouldn’t be looked at too seriously as we only saw Halak for a little over a period in Game 2 before his 2012 playoffs came to an end.

Looking Forward

Halak has now completed two years of his four-year contract. Brian Elliott will once again back him in 2012-13 though it seems like the two have more of an equal partnership than a #1/#2 relationship. Fans should hope on seeing 2012-13 play out like 2011-12 when it comes to St. Louis goaltenders. Realistically, things could not have gone much better. Plan for the Blues to use Halak and Elliott in a rotation like they did this past season in the hopes that each goaltender will push the other forward to bigger and better things.

Tom Stillman – Minority owner of the Blues since 2007, Stillman has been making efforts to purchase the team with his group since Dave Checketts announced the team was for sale back in 2010. Stillman is the CEO of Summit Distributing here in St. Louis, a company that is the second largest beer distributor and the largest distributor of import beer to the St. Louis area.

The rest of Stillman’s group is as follows, though it’s unclear if each member has an equal stake or percentage in their new purchase.

John Danforth – This name should sound pretty familiar. Aside from being Stillman’s father-in-law, Danforth was a United States Senator from Missouri between 1976 and 1995. He then went on to serve as a United States ambassador for the United Nations. Danforth was born in St. Louis.

Steve Maritz – This is another name that should ring a bell for St. Louis residents. Maritz is the CEO of the marketing/PR company of the same name which is located in Fenton.

Donn Lux – CEO of Luxco. Luxco is, according to their site, a leading producer, bottler, importer and marketer of alcohol products. It’s fairly obvious to see where Lux and Stillman have a relationship on the business side of things. Luxco is headquartered in St. Louis.

The Taylor Family – The Taylor family is the final name mentioned in Stillman’s group. They own Enterprise Holdings, the group behind rental companies Enterprise, Alamo and National. Enterprise Holdings originated in St. Louis.

As you can see, Stillman and his group all have ties to the St. Louis area. This is an overwhelming positive. This group knows the St. Louis area and knows how important the Blues are to the fans that live here. It was unlikely the Blues would leave the area regardless of which party bought the club, but the fact Stillman’s group emerged as the buyers ensures the Blues won’t be going anywhere.

We didn’t forget about Brett Hull. Though Hull isn’t involved in Stillman’s group, he will be a face of the franchise once the new group takes over. Hull is expected to be involved in the team’s management though a specific title hasn’t been released yet. It’s safe to assume it will be as an adviser to player development and probably won’t involve Hull taking one of the assistant coaching position.

It’ll be nice to see Hull involved in the organization again. It’ll also be nice to see him back involved in hockey. The past several months have seen Hull gain some notoriety over his … interesting … Twitter account. Now he’ll have a chance to return, albeit off the ice, to the game he loves.

Brett Hull photo courtesy of the team’s official site. 

Well that didn’t take very long, did it? Sarcasm aside, the news comes at a time where St. Louis fans could use something to brighten their day.

I personally believed and hoped the sale of the Blues would be completed in the first half of the 2011-12 season. This would allow a new party to jump on board in time to make any necessary moves prior to the NHL trade deadline. The trade deadline came and went and the sale of the Blues lacked any serious information outside of rumors.

Rumors. Speculation. More rumors. This was the story all season long when it came down to the topic of what was going on with the sale of the Blues. Information was at a premium.

There was a concern that the unending saga of the team’s fate off the ice might impact their play on it. Thankfully, this wasn’t the case. The Blues surged through the regular season on a relatively small budget, making the club a better and better “buy-low” candidate with each passing win.

Tom Stillman, a name that should be pretty familiar to Blues fans, became a minority owner of the Blues back in March of 2007. He was believed to be forming a group to buy the Blues but was unable to reach an agreement with current majority owners TowerBrook Capitals Partners in a sale that would include not only the Blues but also the Peoria Rivermen and the lease to the Scottrade Center. Alleged deals sprang up only to be denied or to be lost to speculation.

A different name, Matthew Hulsizer of Chicago, popped into the mix. He quickly became the favorite to land the Blues. However, as quickly as his interest became known it was squashed when the NHL terminated a purchase agreement that Hulsizer had to buy the Blues.

Once again, Stillman’s group appeared to be the favorite but they still had the obstacle of arriving at a price both sides could agree on. Meanwhile, the Blues continued to excel on the ice, making any contract seem like a brilliant one given the team’s huge value on the ice that was fueled by mostly pennies.

Today, we finally have light at the end of the tunnel. Stillman’s group has apparently closed on the Blues. The deal now goes before the NHL Governors and barring any unexpected surprised, should officially close on Wednesday.

Smile Blues fans. Your favorite team finally has some solid financial backing.

The St. Louis Blues played their best hockey of the second round in the second and third period of Game 4. However, it takes more than two quality periods to win a game and it takes several more to be competitive in a second round playoff series. Ultimately the Blues came up short, repeatedly, and were their own worst enemy in a series that saw the club come unhinged and play their worst hockey of 2011-12.

I’ll write a full recap of the second round on Monday or Tuesday. I don’t believe in writing rants on this site even though it’s technically a blog by definition. I believe in rational, statistical discourse that doesn’t let bias or emotion interfere – when possible.

A full season review post will come out as well along with regular season and playoff grades for each player we saw in a Blues uniform in 2011-12.

The Blues might be done on the ice but there will be plenty of content here all summer long as we all count down until 2012-13.

Ryan Reaves supporters rejoice – the man will finally get some time on the ice. Reaves hasn’t seen any time on the ice since Game 1 against the San Jose Sharks despite plenty of fans urging he see time after the Blues got pushed around in the first game of the current series against LA. Reaves brings more size and a bit more speed, two traits coach Ken Hitchcock is looking for in what could be the team’s final game of the year.

Ian Cole gets the call over Carlo Colaiacovo. Again, Cole adds a bit more size to the lineup. Perhaps more importantly is Colaiacovo being removed after some rather uninspired play over the course of the past several games. Cole played in a forgettable Game 2, taking the place of Alex Pietrangelo, but was forced to the sidelines for Game 3.

What do you think of these roster changes? Personally, I’m all for them – especially the decision to get Ryan Reaves back into the mix. I had thought, and hoped, that Reaves would have been deployed earlier in the series to help set a physical tone for the Blues. At last, he is getting his chance. Unfortunately it might come a little too late.