I know what you are thinking. Another crazy half-brained, full hearted, one-sided trade proposal. No, this is about what might have been.
As a Blues fan, It hurt to watch the Chicago Blackhawks win their third Stanley Cup in the last six years. It hurts even more after watching the Blues go toe-to-toe and in the eyes of many, handle the Hawks in much of their playoff series in 2014. They just didn’t finish when they needed to in that series and Corey Crawford played great. What hurts the most? Knowing what the Blues missed out on when they decided not to draft Jonathan Toews.
The day of the 2006 NHL Draft came and then Blues GM Larry Pleau had decisions to make on who to take with the first overall pick. He opted to go with the best defenseman, Erik Johnson. Pittsburgh took center, Jordan Staal with the second pick and Chicago took center, Jonathan Toews with the third overall. The draft was loaded with talent. Nicklas Backstrom, Phil Kessel, Derick Brassard, and Kyle Okposo went 4-7 in the first round.
Johnson looked like the promising pick at the time with the Blues looking to rebuild starting with putting together a good defensive core. Johnson, at 6’4… 230 pounds, was that big defenseman with offensive upside and skating ability. He looked like a player that the Blues could build around. That became the plan.
Erik Johnson made his name known by playing in the United States National Development team. In ’05-’06, he put up 49 points in 47 games with the program. In the 2006 World Junior Championships, he scored 4 goals and 6 assists in 6 games to help the U.S. take home Gold and became the most hyped defenseman in his draft class. He did not play for the Blues in the 2006-2007 season and opted to play one year of NCAA hockey for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. After signing an entry level contract with the Blues before the ’07 season, Johnson played in 69 games his rookie season amassing 5 goals and 28 assists. He looked to be the promising player the Blues had hoped for. It never got much better.
After the ’07-’08 season, Johnson tore apart his knee during a freak golf cart incident and was forced to miss the next season before it even started. He returned to play the ’09-’10 season and his game had really neither progressed nor regressed. He put up 10 goals and 29 assists in 79 games. His goal total was up from his rookie season and assists per game was down slightly. The ’10-’11 season was the downfall of Johnson’s tenure here in St. Louis. He struggled offensively and defensively and after only putting up 5 goals and 14 assists through 55 games, Blues GM Doug Armstrong decided to trade him. The deal was Johnson and Jay McClement and a conditional first (Duncan Siemens) for Colorado’s Chris Stewart, Kevin Shattenkirk, and a conditional second (Ty Rattie).
Jonathan Toews had been an offensive power long before he became a Chicago Blackhawk. He has consistently been near a point per game player his entire NHL career and even before at Shattuck-Saint Mary’s and at the University of North Dakota. He has won two WJC Golds, One WC Gold, one WC Silver, and two Olympic Golds at the international level. Now he has led his team to three Stanley Cups in the past six years. I have never been a fan of Toews and probably never will be. My smile was so large when he blew up in the penalty box a few years back in the playoffs. He has matured since that moment and really puts his team on his back. The more and more I watch him come through in big games and win on every stage, the more and more I can see how clutch he is. He is a big moment player that the Blues missed out on.
I think looking at today’s Blues roster and looking back at that draft choice and the moves that have been as a result, Blues fans will continue to wonder…what if? Obviously, Kevin Shattenkirk and Ty Rattie for Jonathan Toews would NEVER times infinity ever happen, but looking that the Blues roster now, that is exactly what it looks like. Chris Stewart was traded away in a package deal for Ryan Miller and Steve Ott last year near the trade deadline. Ryan Miller ended up crapping the bed in the playoffs and the Blues were going to let him walk regardless if he wanted to stay here or not. I honestly believe that Doug Armstrong and Hitchcock would have pursued Steve Ott regardless of Miller but who knows what this team could have built up around Toews.
Don’t get me wrong, Kevin Shattenkirk has rounded into a possible perennial Norris Trophy candidate and his contract looks more and more like a steal every time another defenseman signs a contract. Ty Rattie has shown flashes of development and has improved as he plays more, but has also looked invisible at times. These two are really the only two pieces that would be removed from this roster if the Blues elected to pick Toews over Johnson and kept the rebuild plan the same.
Johnson finally started to round out his game when he can stay healthy with the Avalanche. He put up 39 points two seasons ago and helped Colorado win the Central Division. This season also started well for EJ where he made the 2015 All-Star team but unfortunately got hurt and couldn’t play in the game.
Looking back in time, it’s hard to say what might have been with the Blues core that is due for a shakeup if the organization had went with Toews. Could there be three Cups here in St. Louis? Or just more of the same? He has proved to be a winner everywhere he has gone and someone in the Blues front office didn’t pick up on that.