A look at the top St. Louis Blues prospects playing in Canada
A look at the top St. Louis Blues prospects playing in Canada
While the St. Louis Blues continue to work and address their struggles and inconsistencies at the NHL level, their growing prospect pool continues to mature and develop in the junior leagues.
This prospect report will focus on the club's prospects in the junior leagues currently playing in Canada. For clarification purposes, prospects are all players under the age of 25.
Michael Buchinger
Buchinger was drafted by the Blues 88th overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. He remains a high-level, point-producing defenseman in the OHL. The 19-year-old suffered an injury in late January and was announced he would miss 6-8 weeks to have a torn tendon surgically repaired.
Buchinger returned to action with the Guelph Storm on March 1 and has produced one goal, one assist, and a minus-three rating over six games.
Buchinger remains one of the top defensemen in the Blues prospect pool, which currently features few top defensive prospects. As he continues to work his way into the pro hockey level, he could find himself topping out as a second-pairing defenseman should his development go according to plan.
Quinton Burns
One of five players selected in the first three rounds of the 2023 draft, Burns is among the top 10 point-producing prospects for the Blues this season. The 18-year-old is often tasked with playing either the first or second-pairing unit for the Kingston Frontenacs and has a heavy workload for his club.
The Smith Falls, Ontario, native has remained a constant offensive threat for his team this year, producing six goals and 33 points over 54 games. However, his discipline will need work as he currently leads his team in penalty minutes (109) and a minus-19 rating.
Dalibor Dvorsky
A sensational point-producing forward in the OHL this season, Dvorsky is 19th in the league in total points (74) with 38 goals and 36 assists through 46 games with the Sudbury Wolves.
For a player who joined the Wolves nearly 20 games into the season, he currently sits third on his team in points and leads his team in goals scored.
Dvorsky remains a well-rounded forward prospect who should develop into a dangerous top-six forward with the potential to score every time he is on the ice.
Matthew Mayich
The third defensive prospect for the Blues in the OHL, Mayich, a sixth-round pick (170th overall) in the 2023 draft, is a left-shot defender currently playing for the Ottawa 67's. His six goals and 21 points this season rank him third in points among defensemen on his team and 12th overall.
While he is not a point-producing defender, Mayich is a quiet player who does all of the little things well of the modern defenseman.
With his work ethic and play style, he could become a useful, quiet defender in the pros who is shuffled between the second and third pairs at the height of his career.
Landon Sim
After missing almost half a season due to an undisclosed lower-body injury, Sim returned to action for the London Knights, producing 10 goals and 28 points through 38 games. Sim returned to action just in time to play his younger brother Lane for the first time in a game against the Sarnia Sting.
The 19-year-old moves well up and down the ice, setting his teammates up for a scoring opportunity. He can also be deceptive with the puck when looking for a shooting opportunity. After scoring 14 goals and 28 points through 56 games with the Knights during the 2022-23 season, he has returned to action well and is proving to himself and others that his injury is behind him.
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