St. Louis Blues: Vladimir Tarasenko’s No Show No Big Deal

The St. Louis Blues’ budding star, Vladimir Tarasenko seems to be getting media attention for all the wrong things lately. The latest one seems bad, but will end up being no big deal.

For those of you unaware, the St. Louis Blues held a final media day with the players on Saturday and the biggest name on the team did not show up. Vladimir Tarasenko was apparently in the arena too, which only makes things look worse. However, call me crazy, but I don’t think this will end up being as big a deal as will be made of it.

Just to get the perspective of someone who was there, I encourage you to read the piece by Post-Dispatch writer, Ben Frederickson here.

His perspective is that other players answered the tough questions, such as pending free-agency or trade rumors and the like. While I fully understand that thinking, the answers were a lot of what you would expect.

Sure, the media had the opportunity to ask guys like David Backes, Troy Brouwer and Kevin Shattenkirk about their futures, but we didn’t really get any answer outside of the norm. No player is ever going to tell the local media, in their last potential interview with them, that they don’t plan on returning to the team or they think their future will be better if they leave.

Shattenkirk’s comments are the perfect example of this. “That’s not my decision. I’m happy to be coming back here next year,” said Shattenkirk. “I have a year left and this is where I want to be next year. That’s out of my hands unfortunately.”

Again, the reporter is doing their job by asking, but what other answer is he going to give? He’s not going to say he was distracted by trade talk. He’s not going to say things are unlikely to work out and he’ll be in a different uniform at some point next season.

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The same is true of all the players with all their various situations. No matter how truthful they are, the players are still protecting themselves and the franchise because that’s part of the game.

All that taken into account then, what were we really going to learn by hearing Tarasenko talk? The media likes to think they can ask the tough questions and read between the lines if no answer is really given.

Were we really going to hear an answer that Tarasenko was feuding with Ken Hitchcock? Was there going to be some sort of ultimatum that management had to go or the Blues’ new star would? 99% chance no.

He was going to give token answers. He was going to give Marc Vlasic credit for defending him. He was going to say he will work harder in the offseason and come back better next year. He was going to chalk up the arguments with the coach to the heat of the moment.

Nothing major was going to be gleaned. No bombshells were going to be dropped regardless of the media’s propensity to think otherwise.

All of this does not give Tarasenko a complete pass. It still does not look good on him.

There are worries that he is becoming a bit of a child and this does nothing to quell that. The frustration shown in the Chicago series was completely understood, but rumors have gone around of continual malcontent behavior after that.

His body language was less than stellar in the Sharks series. He seemed more than frustrated by the constant attention he got from defenders and for much of the series seemed to have a take your ball and go home attitude rather than working harder.

This is another mark against him in quick succession. It still doesn’t seem like the end of the world.

A case was made on twitter that players like Alex Ovechkin don’t use their language barrier as an excuse. Arguments were also made that if Tarasenko hopes to take over for Backes as a leader, regardless of the captain’s C, this isn’t the way to show leadership.

Tarasnenko doesn’t strike me as a vocal leader anyway. He doesn’t seem likely to fit wearing the C. His leadership comes by performing, which he did for most of the season and just fell off the cliff in one playoff series.

Was this a bit childish? Yes. Was this a bit unprofessional? Yes. Should he have faced the music and just spoken with the media? Yes.

Tarasenko was not in the right in his actions. Being at the arena and not showing up makes it look worse since there isn’t the excuse of spending time with his family and new baby.

It still just doesn’t seem like that big of a deal. Nothing major is ever revealed at these media sessions. Stock answers are usually all that’s ever given.

This isn’t going to impede Tarasenko’s ability to score. It’s not going to impede his ability to skate. Outside of there being some sort of clash with the head coach, there isn’t anything franchise shaking to happen.

Next: St. Louis Blues Report Card

If there is a clash, it’s better kept behind closed doors. Sources will reveal things in time if that’s the case, but having a star that keeps it to himself rather than whining in the media is something that is admirable in today’s society.

We don’t know what’s going on in his head.  This may have nothing to do with the franchise.  Becoming a parent changes people in ways none of us can understand if we aren’t in that very moment.

When next season rolls around, regardless of who is coach or who is in management, this will all have faded into memory. It’s not Tarasenko’s best moment, for sure, but it’s not a big deal either.