St. Louis Blues: Who Steps In For Alexander Steen?

By Todd Panula | Jul 8, 2016

May 21, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; St. Louis Blues left wing Alexander Steen (20) shoots as San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns (88) watches the puck in the third period of game four of the Western Conference Final of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. The Blues won 6-3. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports /

With Alexander Steen out from his surgery and the timetable for his return uncertain, it is worth thinking about who steps into his spot for the St. Louis Blues.

Alexander Steen is one of the more talented players on the St. Louis Blues roster. Ken Hitchcock even said he was the best player for the Blues in the playoffs.

Since he had surgery though, someone needs to take his spot. From a production standpoint, it won’t be easy. He had a down year in 2015-16 and still had 52 points.

From a pure roster point of view, it may be equally questionable as to who takes the spot. The reason it is a difficult choice is that it depends on where the Blues want to play Steen when he returns.

There have been talks of playing Steen at center. If that is the case, it throws a wrench in things because even if he is healthy it becomes difficult to predict where he lands in the lineup anyway.

If Steen is going to be a center, he very well could be placed on the top line to be that physical presence to take some heat off of Vladimir Tarasenko. If he’s not on the top line, he could be centering the second line with Robby Fabbri and whichever player the Blues elect to place on the right wing – looking like Dmitrij Jaskin or Patrik Berglund at this point unless a trade shakes things up.

If he’s considered a winger, then that makes things a little different as well. As the depth chart stands right now, also assuming Vladimir Sobotka does come back, then it would be centers of Paul Stastny, Jori Lehtera, Sobotka and Kyle Brodziak.

More from Editorials

The big question then is who steps into the slot left open by Steen if he is unable to come back for the beginning of the season.

The most likely person to benefit from all of it is Ty Rattie. Though Steen is listed as a left winger, there are enough pieces that could be maneuvered around that Rattie should benefit in the form of playing time.

Magnus Paajarvi could also take up the mantle. While he is not overly beloved by the St. Louis Blues fan base, the team clearly has faith that he can still be a valuable asset or they would not have re-signed him even to a one-year deal.

If the Blues actually wanted to swap position for position and consider Steen a center, then Ivan Barbashev would be the next man up unless someone new pops up from the blue during training camp. That one seems like the least likely as the Blues technically have four centers even if Steen is not playing.

People keep fretting over the offensive power of this team and losing Steen for any significant time will not be a good thing. However, if players live up to the expectations they’ve had on them at various points in their careers then it won’t be that much of a problem.

With this discussion, it seems like Rattie may be the odd man out even with Steen on the injured list. Rattie needs to see some time though. He’s got speed, skill and scoring ability.

It’s time for the Blues to decide whether he can be an NHL player or not. Rattie is only 23, but they have only scratched the surface of what he could be capable of and need to find out whether he really will be that player or is just an AHL guy good for the occasional spelling of the injured man here or there.

The Blues don’t want to be without Steen for an extended period of time, but the team isn’t quite as devoid of talent as so many want to believe. The team has replacement possibilities and a good locker room mentality already instilled that it’s just the next man up for the team after last season’s terrible injury plague.

Next: Making A Case For the Blues To Sign Radim Vrbata

We all know that the current regime has something in mind for Paajarvi and Barbashev probably needs to see at least a couple games here and there. This needs to be Rattie’s time though and hopefully he can make a case for himself to keep on playing even when Steen returns.

Home/Editorials