Dylan Holloway is healthy, and he’s been on a tear, propelling the St. Louis Blues back into the playoff hunt.
With 11 games remaining and the St. Louis Blues sitting six points out of the second wild card spot in the Western Conference, their season isn’t over just yet.
Including the six-point gap, four teams sit between the Blues and the Nashville Predators, but they haven’t given up any hope just yet.
During this late-season run, the Blues have been propelled by stellar performances from Joel Hofer, as well as star rookie Jimmy Snuggerud, veteran Robert Thomas, and plenty of emerging young talent like Dalibor Dvorsky, Otto Stenberg, and Theo Lindstein.
But, possibly too quietly, Dylan Holloway has taken his game to another level and has been a catalyst offensively for the Blues.
Since returning from a high-ankle sprain, which resulted in two separate stints on the injured reserve, Holloway has posted nine goals and 19 points in 15 games. His 19 points lead the Blues and rank tied for 16th in the NHL. His nine goals also rank first on the Blues and tied for 10th in the NHL.
His production has been outstanding and much needed, but he’s evolved into so much more. For a few games, Thomas was unable to take faceoffs for the Blues, so Holloway stepped in and did an admirable job. This season, Holloway has won 48 percent of his faceoffs.
Dylan Holloway (Joe Puetz-Imagn Images)Elsewhere, Holloway has seen his ice time increase to 18:05 this season, compared to 16:49 last year. He is averaging 2.39 hits per game this year, compared to 2.14 last year. He’s also made a more conscious effort to shoot the puck, firing 2.63 shots per game, compared to 2.31 last year.
All of this has led to great on-ice results for Holloway. At 5-on-5, the Blues are outscoring their opponents 38-30, have an expected goals percentage of 52.56 percent, and post a positive Corsi For percentage as well as a positive shot share percentage with Holloway on the ice, according to naturalstattrick.com.
In all, the 24-year-old has notched 17 goals and 36 points in 49 games this season, which would amount to 29 goals and 60 points over an 82-game season. His post-Olympics production would result in 38 goals and 104 points in 82 games.
It’s fair to say that Holloway has found his game in an important time of the season and is bringing out the best in Thomas and Snuggerud, while they bring out the best in him.
Holloway is due for a contract extension as he is set to become an RFA. He could likely be looking to cash in like Philip Broberg did and sign a long-term deal in St. Louis. But before that, Holloway has an important contest against the San Jose Sharks to take care of.
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