Three Craziest Blues Stories Of 2014

While 2014 may have drawn to a close, it was a strong year for the Blues, starting with sending T.J. Oshie to the Olympics and closing with one of the biggest attention-grabbing goaltending situations in the NHL. Even though the Blues have been up-and-down over the past year, at least their on- and off-ice moves have conspired to keep us engaged. Next are three of the most eye-widening moments in Blues history for all of 2014.

And you know the first one had to be…

Blues Sign Martin Brodeur

This was, perhaps, the biggest WTF moment of the 2014-2015 season, let alone the Blues’ season. Every fan I know was losing their minds over this signing.

Whether you love Brodeur or hate him (and most people fall into the latter category) the man is a deeply polarizing figure. Many seemed pretty satisfied to see him go, although bloggers and journalists were likely sad to see those clicks go with him. That our beloved Blues picked him up not only revitalized his career, but made headlines across the ‘net with that infamous picture of Marty stonefaced in a Blues uniform, chewing his gum as if it had personally offended him. And, of course, his 125th NHL shutout.

Dec 3, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; St. Louis Blues goalie Martin Brodeur (30) on the bench during the first period against the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

Interestingly enough, the choice to pick up ol’ Marty hasn’t been great for St. Louis’ record, having gone from 16-6-2 pre-signing to 6-5-1 post.

While Brodeur’s future is uncertain now that Elliott is off IR, we’re sure to see the Blues making headlines with whatever their decision is.

Oshie Rocks Sochi

Feb 15, 2014; Sochi, RUSSIA; USA forward T.J. Oshie (74) scores a goal past Russia goalkeeper Sergei Bobrovski (72) in the overtime shootout in a men’s preliminary round ice hockey game during the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Bolshoy Ice Dome. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports

After the 2014 Winter Olympics, T.J. Oshie, forward for the St. Louis Blues, went from having 92,000 Twitter followers to 131,000 in under an hour. Today, that number stands at 300,000.

Why, you wonder? (No, you don’t. You already followed Oshie on Twitter beforehand.)

Simply put, his shootout performance against Russia at the Olympics was outstanding. Oshie can be one of the best shooters on the ice, and was much-lauded for his performance during the Sochi Olympics for the men’s U.S. team. Goals like the one below are not an unusual occurrence for him.

In an astounding infographic created by NBC, we, along with casual hockey fans, learned that one of the magnificent things about Oshie is that his shootout goals come from just about every angle you can think of. He doesn’t appear to heavily favor one shot over the other, and his unpredictability makes him priceless in a shootout.

Seabrook Hits Backes…Hard

Apr 4, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; St. Louis Blues center David Backes (42) during the third period against the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center. The Blues beat the Blackhawks 4-3 in the shootout. Mandatory Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports

If you watched that moment in the first round of the playoffs last year, I guarantee you at least winced, if you didn’t fall over, yelling about illegal checks and “having some respect!”

Or maybe that was just me.

At any rate, Seabrooks’ hit on Backes was determined illegal and dangerous, and the taunting afterwards done by Seabrooks’ longtime D-partner Duncan Keith was the icing on the cake.

While Backes returned to play a few games later, the reaction to this hit came down heavily in Backes’ favor, and was, indeed, a WTF moment for nearly everyone watching.

Which story do you think took center stage for the Blues this year?

Live Feed

Causeway Crowd