The St. Louis Blues have had a very interesting preseason thus far to kick off the 2026-27 season. In a two-game stint against the Dallas Stars, they lost both contests, 2-1.
There have been a couple of players sent back to the AHL level, as well as their junior hockey team in Canada. The roster continues to dwindle, and over two games, there have been two players who have gained and two who have lost ground in their hopes of making the final roster.
Let’s talk about it.
Winners
Theo Lindstein
The biggest winner of the preseason so far has been Theo Lindstein. He has been everything that head coach Jim Montgomery has wanted, and his placement on the opening-night roster is almost guaranteed.
Lindstein has looked considerably better than his 17-game tryout last season, and has used this past summer to really hone his skills into a complete defenseman. There is a reason why this team has been so high on him for so long, and he is showing it.
Zach Dean
One of the Blues' biggest question marks was how Zach Dean was going to be in this training camp and preseason. It is safe to say that after two games and a couple of practices, he is making a seriously good impression to make it onto the Blues roster at some point this season. He has been lightning quick, creative with the puck, and has overall shown a lot of upside with his game.
Dean is not a lock for this upcoming season at the start, but an injury or poor play from someone in the bottom six could reintroduce him to the NHL in 2026-27.
Losers
Otto Stenberg
This was going to be a big year for Otto Stenberg. His brother was just drafted with the second-overall pick, further adding more pressure to the fringe NHLer’s chances. Through two games of play, it has been a mediocre showing. He had an assist on Jonathan Berggren’s goal in the second game of the preseason, but it was not anything to write home about.
Tyler Tucker
Even prior to his unfortunate knee injury, Tyler Tucker was heading to one of two places at the start of the season, and that is as a seventh defenseman or in Springfield. His lone showing in the first game of the preseason was not spectacular, and as mentioned above, Lindstein has checked all of the boxes.
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