Bleedin' Blue | A St. Louis Blues Blog http://bleedinblue.com A St. Louis Blues Blog Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:45:10 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 It’s Almost That Time http://bleedinblue.com/2010/09/07/its-almost-that-time/ http://bleedinblue.com/2010/09/07/its-almost-that-time/#comments Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:45:10 +0000 Justin Stine http://bleedinblue.com/?p=307 It has been awfully slow around the Blues organization for the last few weeks, but that won’t be the case for much longer. Training camp opens September 17, and the team will hit the ice for the first time on the 18th. With the season just around the corner, apparently plenty of Blues players are already in town and working out. Guys like T.J. Oshie, David Backes, and Carlo Colaiacovo made it into town this past week, and new goalie Jaroslav Halak is expected to arrive in town on Wednesday. Can’t wait until the team gets back out there on the ice.

Also, the team has finalized their TV deal for the upcoming season. Fox Sports Midwest will air 75 games on their network, and Versus is expected to pick up another five. That means 80 of the 82 games are expected to be on TV, so we shouldn’t have any trouble getting a good look at the team this year.

]]> http://bleedinblue.com/2010/09/07/its-almost-that-time/feed/ 0 Keys To The Upcoming Season http://bleedinblue.com/2010/08/31/keys-to-the-upcoming-season/ http://bleedinblue.com/2010/08/31/keys-to-the-upcoming-season/#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:28:14 +0000 Justin Stine http://bleedinblue.com/?p=305 UNIONDALE, NY - MARCH 11: Erik Johnson #6 of the St. Louis Blues skates against the New York Islanders at the Nassau Coliseum on March 11, 2010 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

We  all know that the Blues are hoping to take a step forward and back into the playoffs this season, but what will have to happen if the team is going to take that next step? Here are a few things that have to happen if the Blues are going to head back to the promise land in 2010-2011.

1. Goaltending- I’m not one of those guys who wants to blame Chris Mason for anything that happened last season, and actually I think he did a pretty good job overall. With that being said, I think Jaroslav Halak has the potential to do something that Mason couldn’t consistently: win games in the third period. The blown leads certainly weren’t all Mason’s fault, but sometimes a young team like this needs a goalie who will step up to that next level late in the game. Halak proved last season that he is at his best under pressure, and if he wins a couple of those games for us, this team could be much better this season.

2. Front-line Scoring- It’s imperative that someone on this roster steps up as a major goal-scorer in the upcoming season. There has to be a player on this team that everyone else can rely on to score a big goal when it’s needed. You have to look at two players for this role: David Backes and Brad Boyes. Both players have done it in the past, and both guys have the potential to do it again. I’m especially looking to Backes to have a major year in 2010-2011.

3. Youth Maturity- This team is still young, but it’s getting to a point where we can’t blame the youth anymore. These guys have been around, and it’s time for everyone to be held accountable. Guys like Patrick Berglund, TJ Oshie, and Erik Johnson all need to ascend to the level we expect them to play at. I’m not saying these guys were bad last year, but i think they can all be better. I really think this could be the year Johnson becomes an elite NHL defenseman, and if he does we could see a completely different squad.

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