The St. Louis Blues' have not been good enough to contend, but not bad enough to tank. Is there anything they can do to get back on the right track in 2026-27, and make the playoffs for just the second time in five years?
It's been a busy summer for the St. Louis Blues after a disappointing season.
New general manager Alexander Steen worked multiple trades ahead of the draft, and signed a few free agents to round out his roster.
But getting all your work done by mid-July means a lot of waiting around, and wondering whether the team has done enough to claw its way back into the playoffs for just the second time since their 109-point season in 2021-22.
Thanks to all that wheeling and dealing, they may have what it takes to make the cut, but the following issues will really determine whether they're a playoff team once again in 2026-27.
1. Robert Thomas Showing He Is A Star
Robert Thomas has never scored more than 26 goals in a season, but he's hovered around a point-per-game pace for most of the last several years (373 points in his last 361 games).
That's very good, obviously. He ranks 31st in the league over that time, in fact.
Although, you're not going to make the playoffs these days if your team's leading scorer only has 64 points like he did last season. For the Blues to power out of these mediocre seasons, Thomas has to level up.
More goals will be a must, especially with Jordan Kyrou shipped to the Washington Capitals and younger guys like Connor McMichael and Mason McTavish not totally proven as legitimate goal-scoring threats yet.
Thomas is now the Blues' go-to guy, and with Brayden Schenn off to Long Island, he might also be the next captain. He has to pick up that ball and run with it.
2. Growth From The Kids
The good news for Thomas is that he might have some serious help on the way.
Jimmy Snuggerud is coming off an excellent rookie season, finishing with 21 goals and 51 points in 70 games. Jake Neighbours and Dalibor Dvorsky seem to have more to give as well.
On the defensive end, Theo Lindstein improved as the season went along and will be counted on to take more minutes this season than his 15:46 per game. Likewise, Logan Mailloux needs to prove that his late-season work wasn't just him cleaning up in garbage time.
The Blues don't necessarily need all five of these kids to hit for them, but three or four would certainly be nice.
3. Philip Broberg Making The Most Of His Opportunity
With veteran Blues blueliner Justin Faulk traded at the deadline last year, Philip Broberg got a chance to stretch his legs and take on big minutes.
The Blues clearly counted on him a lot more in the final quarter of the year, averaging 24:06 TOI in 21 games after Faulk was traded on March 6 compared to the 23:05 he averaged in 60 games prior.
The extra TOI might come on the power play, because Faulk was their top guy while Broberg was a decided No. 3 option behind Cam Fowler. After that trade, Broberg got the bulk of the PP1 time. Look for that to continue, and for his production to rise as a result.
Jim Montgomery probably can't play him 26-plus minutes a night, but he'll certainly get the opportunity to prove he can do it.
4. Jordan Binnington Having A Good Contract Year
If you're looking for a culprit for the Blues missing the playoffs by just four points, look no further than their No. 2 goalie.
Jordan Binnington was arguably the worst goalie in the league. He finished with an .873 save percentage and a -22.4 goals-saved above expected according to MoneyPuck, which were the fourth-lowest and dead last numbers in the league, respectively, among goalies with at least 25 appearances.
And yet somehow, the Blues gave him 41 games. Anyone they called up from the AHL or maybe even ECHL would have done better with that opportunity.
Meanwhile, starter Joel Hofer put together a .909 SP and only got 46 appearances despite having missed no time due to injury. It's inexplicable.
Regardless, Binnington needs to reset, and he's in a contract year. He has all the motivation in the world to be better than this. Failing that, Montgomery has all the reason in the world to staple him to the bench and never even think about him appearing in half of the team's games.
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