Jason Millen: Blues look to shoot down the injury riddled Ducks Blues look to shoot down the injury riddled Ducks

Should be a fun one tonight - Hopefully Getz is sharper than he was against Canes - and let's see how the lines shake out without #10 - Ducks need to be much better D wise than on Monday or Blues will light them up -

Speaking of Sobotka, there is no real reason to bash him for missing the open net. By now, Blues fans need to accept that he is an average 3rd line player. Average 3rd line players don’t always bury their quality chances at the rate you would expect or hope.
- Jason Millen

A-freakin'-men. Well said.

When you have him on your third line, you've got the chance to have three really good lines that can provide scoring. When he's one of your top-six, you're too thin up front.

Still wanting to see the club go outside the organization for help and i wouldn't automatically say no to Evander Kane.

Speaking of Sobotka, there is no real reason to bash him for missing the open net. By now, Blues fans need to accept that he is an average 3rd line player. Average 3rd line players don’t always bury their quality chances at the rate you would expect or hope.


Ray Charles would've scored on that play..................

Speaking of Sobotka, there is no real reason to bash him for missing the open net. By now, Blues fans need to accept that he is an average 3rd line player. Average 3rd line players don’t always bury their quality chances at the rate you would expect or hope.


Ray Charles would've scored on that play..................
- Blues65

It happens. Better now than in the playoffs.

A-freakin'-men. Well said.

When you have him on your third line, you've got the chance to have three really good lines that can provide scoring. When he's one of your top-six, you're too thin up front.

Still wanting to see the club go outside the organization for help and i wouldn't automatically say no to Evander Kane.
- bcallaway

Agree on Sobotka, disagree on Kane. One of the reasons for this teams success is the collective mindset that they share. You risk altering that when you bring in a guy who takes pictures of himself with wads of hundred dollar bills. This is a guy who would be on your top line who is maybe not respected by his teammates or who doesn't fully respect the teams process himself.

Agree on Sobotka, disagree on Kane. One of the reasons for this teams success is the collective mindset that they share. You risk altering that when you bring in a guy who takes pictures of himself with wads of hundred dollar bills. This is a guy who would be on your top line who is maybe not respected by his teammates or who doesn't fully respect the teams process himself.
- fattyboubatty

Its a risk for sure. But the guy can play.

Agree on Sobotka, disagree on Kane. One of the reasons for this teams success is the collective mindset that they share. You risk altering that when you bring in a guy who takes pictures of himself with wads of hundred dollar bills. This is a guy who would be on your top line who is maybe not respected by his teammates or who doesn't fully respect the teams process himself.
- fattyboubatty

I am beginning to think Kane might not be a terrible idea. Only thing is cap space.

Ray Charles would've scored on that play..................
- Blues65

Stephen Hawking could have hit that open net.....

I am beginning to think Kane might not be a terrible idea. Only thing is cap space.
- BluemanGuruu

A lot of his immature behavior can be dealt with by having veteran leadership. Guys to come around him and say ,"no dude, we don't do that stuff here."

If you have your leadership on board, they can help him grow up and he can definitely help the Blues with their scoring.

A package built around Steen might get the cap space for Kane.

My nephew was on the carpet for the national anthems. Maybe Tarasenko has gotten the monkey off his shoulder now. LETS GO BLUES!! Hutton is playing GREAT

A package built around Steen might get the cap space for Kane.
- lastmanback

He's too much a part of the team to part with.

He's too much a part of the team to part with.
- BluemanGuruu

Why would Buffalo want Alexander Steen

Seriously

Blues cant trade any futures for Kane and the guys they want to trade no one wants any more

Unless you are trading a blue chip prospect with Steen or a Berglund+ You are not getting Kane

Blues have this team for this year so lets just get used to that idea

A package built around Steen might get the cap space for Kane.
- lastmanback

The idea would be to add offense but not at the expense of trading a 2 way forward whether or not he (steen) is showing major signs of regression.

Kane would be a pure rental and could be had for the right prospect and a pick I'd think unless Buffalo is really serious about resigning him. Even with that said I'm not personally completely sold on him as a good fit for the team and would look elsewhere first.

It is becoming clear that they are going to have to make a move or two to add some offense and balance out the lines.

Why would Buffalo want Alexander Steen

Seriously

Blues cant trade any futures for Kane and the guys they want to trade no one wants any more

Unless you are trading a blue chip prospect with Steen or a Berglund+ You are not getting Kane

Blues have this team for this year so lets just get used to that idea
- sycsam

Actually a lot of teams would like a player like Steen even with his contract. But Buffalo already signed a couple of players that are similar in age, cost but not necessarily ability.

Steen is not a bad player to have. He is not the issue. Having Fabbri and Schwartz injured is and ontop of that are a single scoring forward away from breaking through on that end. One of these kids will provide that.

Otherwise Allen is just too inconsistent. Now I'd take Lehner from Buffalo, especially if you could dump Allen. I think he is at his ceiling good, sometimes great, sometimes mediocre. Give me a big goalie with this defense and we will crush it.

When Thomas is the number two center we will be crushing teams.


Now if one could move Berglund in a trade involving Kane I'd like that. Good player but a third liner through and through.

Actually a lot of teams would like a player like Steen even with his contract. But Buffalo already signed a couple of players that are similar in age, cost but not necessarily ability.

Steen is not a bad player to have. He is not the issue. Having Fabbri and Schwartz injured is and ontop of that are a single scoring forward away from breaking through on that end. One of these kids will provide that.

Otherwise Allen is just too inconsistent. Now I'd take Lehner from Buffalo, especially if you could dump Allen. I think he is at his ceiling good, sometimes great, sometimes mediocre. Give me a big goalie with this defense and we will crush it.

When Thomas is the number two center we will be crushing teams.


Now if one could move Berglund in a trade involving Kane I'd like that. Good player but a third liner through and through.
- BluemanGuruu

Yeah this team is never the same when Schwartz is out of the lineup. Until he comes back and Tarasenko gets going, it's going to be hit and miss even if they were to bring in a guy like Kane.

Lehner is a good goalie but he sucks at playing the biscuit. With Brodeur in house I think that will continue to be a key feature they look at when scouting goalies.

Yeah this team is never the same when Schwartz is out of the lineup. Until he comes back and Tarasenko gets going, it's going to be hit and miss even if they were to bring in a guy like Kane.

Lehner is a good goalie but he sucks at playing the biscuit. With Brodeur in house I think that will continue to be a key feature they look at when scouting goalies.
- fattyboubatty

Which is why it sucked they let that one guy go a few years back. He had crap numbers on bad Edmonton teams.

I noticed though that Sundqvist even though he has had trouble scoring has been good for this team with his speed. But Berglund looks slow and he's not that good of a center.

With Berglund injured we win, with Schwartz injured where is the step up in the game for players like Berglund?

I think Thompson will be good for this team. Good enough speed, ability to create time and space out of nothing and good at possession.

How good would this team be with a healthy Schwartz and Fabbri?

Add in Thomas and Kyrou and there is speed, creativity and crazily enough good enough to play in their own end. I think Thomas was a draft steal. He's one of those guys whose development started to tick up late in his draft year. Another guy who did that but got scorching hot in the jr play offs---Skinner.

Nice to see Thompson get his first goal but that was a heart breaking way to lose. Might be all for the best, this team needs a good kick in the a$$. Schwartz is a good player but they should be better than 2 and 5 without him.

I will say, Petro looks like he's still banged up and some of the D men look like they're not quite ready for the extra minutes.

Nice to see Thompson get his first goal but that was a heart breaking way to lose. Might be all for the best, this team needs a good kick in the a$$. Schwartz is a good player but they should be better than 2 and 5 without him.

I will say, Petro looks like he's still banged up and some of the D men look like they're not quite ready for the extra minutes.
- fattyboubatty

With Schwartz out of the lineup, and the defense no longer scoring a third of the Blues' goals, there's a glaring lack of scoring from the Blues' forwards.

With Schwartz out of the lineup, and the defense no longer scoring a third of the Blues' goals, there's a glaring lack of scoring from the Blues' forwards.
- bcallaway

Very true. A lot of talk today about the late goal they gave up but when Schenn is the only player you have consistently providing offense, you're going to have problems.

Steen and Stastny haven't scored in what seems like 20 games and Tarasenko seems to have lost his touch altogether. Everyone's favorite native son Cam Janssen is of the mind that the absence of Ryan Reaves is at the root of his problems. I'm sure he does miss him as they were good friends but on the ice I think Schwartz is the one he misses more.

We've seen Tarasenko go into these funks before, most notably during the playoffs and I don't think it's because he doesn't care or have the right line mates, I think he's just too much of a one trick pony. Everybody in the league knows his wrist shot is lethal but other than that, his one timer is pedestrian at best, he doesn't really have a B-hand to speak of, and I honestly don't think I've seen him take a slapper ever. The elite guys in the league, they can pull any one of those tricks out of their bag at any point. He needs to be out there cranking slap shots every day after practice, then maybe he can at least develop a decent one timer.