St. Louis Blues: Vladimir Tarasenko, My Tooth For The Blues Kingdom

St. Louis Blues player Vladimir Tarasenko gave everything for his team against Chicago, including a tooth, but that still didn’t satisfy some.

St. Louis Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko did everything you could expect from your top player Wednesday, except what most Blues fans measure his performance by, scoring. Although that night he was not the only Blues player guilty of that sin.

Tarasenko led the team, along with Robbie Fabbri and Colton Parayko, in shots on goal. In a game where the Blues outshot the Blackhawks by ten. He also had a key poke check on a sprawling play to prevent a breakaway on Jake Allen.

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This game illustrated all things Tarasenko does for the Blues aside from scoring. He single handily kept the game a one-goal game more than once. We all would have loved to see him get the game tieing goal, or even better the winner, but he is only one player.

Now let’s look at the game against the Knights, a dominating victory. Tarasenko had the same number of goals in that game as the Blackhawks game. The difference is he had two helpers to Ryan O’Reilly.

Do all the those blaming Vladimir for the Blues woes on his lack of scoring, see any correlation between O’Riely’s career year and his playing with Tarasenko. All the Blues opponents know whom they need to stop and that opens a lot of open ice for O’Riely.

The difference between O’Reilly and other Teresenko linemates is that he can capitalize on the time and space Vladdy creates for him. We also can’t discount Jaden Schwartz‘s contribution to this equation.

It is no doubt that Vladdy plays best when Schwartz is on the ice. Unfortunately for Schwartz, his contributions have not translated to points on the score sheet, but never the less the line of Schwartz, O’Reilly, and Tarasenko has been the Blues best forward line so far this year.

No one, with any credible hockey credentials, knocked Wayne Gretzky when his goal production went down, while his assists went up. The definition of a great player is one who not only is a good player singularly but makes those who play with him better at the same time.

I thought Blues fans were smart enough to realize when Tarasenko evolved from pure goal scorer to an all-around great player to appreciate that growth. That doesn’t that means fans should never expect him to score, but that should not be the only metric by which they judge him.

Now that the Blues have the second line with David Perron and company that represent an actual second scoring line. The opposition can’t focus on just shutting down Tarasenko’s line. The third and fourth lines have scoring threats in the surprising Oskar Sundqvist, Alexander Steen, Tyler Bozak, and others.

No one puts more pressure on Tarasenko to score than Vladimir, or maybe his grandfather. He feels the stress of goalless draughts and puts more pressure on himself. Having O’Reilly scoring helps alleviates some of that stress and should result in more goals in the long run.

I don’t think anybody who has 16 points in 17 games is a disappointment to his teammates or fans. Especially considering the other things he does away from the puck and the consistent hustle on the ice. You also never hear him grouse or complain, at least not in English, about the team or teammates.

If Vladimir Tarasenko isn’t good enough for the Blues fan base than we are in trouble, there are few better playing the game right now. Part of this issue I think is the growth of the fan base into “non-hockey” people. Which is a great thing, but they don’t always understand what’s going on away from the puck and that sometimes good play doesn’t necessarily show up on the score sheet.

While the tooth Vladimir lost was not a real one, having been lost and replaced before, it is still symbolic of his commitment to the team and teammates. It should also show the fans his willingness to sacrifice for the team, as he took the high stick in the defensive zone.

The Blues have possibly the most talented and deep group of forwards in years, or perhaps ever. They have had greater individual talents, but as a whole, this is their best group. With Tarasenko leading the way they have a chance to do something special indeed.

The recent spate of injuries has made things difficult and has set off an unplanned youth movement, but the pieces are there. Mike Yeo just has to find the right combination, let them play, and resist the urge to tinker.

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