St. Louis Blues Waive Troy Brouwer, Tarasenko Return Close?

The St. Louis Blues made a sudden roster move on March 10. The question is whether that means a certain someone is ready to return.

The St. Louis Blues always maintained that Vladimir Tarasenko might be able to return by March, but it might not have been until April. Yet, as time went on, many fans figured it would be closer to the end of the season than anyone wanted.

From a fear standpoint, it makes sense. Tarasenko has already had far too many shoulder issues for someone of his age. You don’t want him to push it too much, too early, and re-injure it, possibly ruining his career.

However, the Blues made a roster move that makes one wonder if a return is coming sooner rather than later. On Tuesday morning, March 10, 2020, the Blues put forward Troy Brouwer on waivers.

In and of itself, this would not be much news. This is the third time the Blues have put Brouwer on waivers this season, often with the intention of giving the roster spot to someone else – normally because a player was returning from injury.

However, this time, there is only one player that can return from injury now. The Blues no longer have to worry about the trade deadline or whether any players added at said deadline will fit in the cap if/when Tarasenko returned.

The only thing they have to worry about is being cap compliant and roster compliant when Tarasenko returns. Brouwer was only costing the team the minimum, so the cap hit likely made no difference. So, does that mean his departure to the minors or to NHL purgatory signals the imminent return of the Blues top goal scorer?

Logic would say it does. Personal wants makes us all hope it does.

The Blues were on a roll during their eight-game win streak, but even during some of those games, we could see the offense drying up. There was a 1-0 win over Arizona during the streak, the Blues only managed two goals against a very leaky Chicago defense and barely mustered one goal against the Florida Panthers.

While it is too much pressure to put on one player, the Blues need Tarasenko to get back. They need him to provide extra scoring punch and, if nothing else, give them the option of a player that can put the team on his back, drive down the ice and score when it is needed most.

The danger of that thinking is because, while all scorers are streaky, Tarasenko is very streaky. He can score goals in five straight and then go seven games with barely a point.

Even so, he frees up space for other players. When Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz were clicking last year, some of that was due to the attention Tarasenko demands from other teams’ defenses.

In the team’s last four games, against the Rangers, Devils, Blackhawks and Panthers, the Blues had eight goals scored. Only three of those were by forwards and one of those was an empty net goal.

Additionally, against the Panthers, only two forwards took two shots – Tyler Bozak and Oskar Sundqvist. Everyone else had one or none. St. Louis could use someone with the capability of scoring 30 goals to return to their lineup.

Of course, it would take Tarasenko awhile to get up to speed. Still, he was playing well to start the year with three goals and 10 points in 10 games.

No offense to Brouwer, who will always have one of the biggest goals in team history to eliminate the Blackhawks in the playoffs, but we all sincerely hope that his departure means Tarasenko is back. It makes no sense to waive him right now if it means nothing.

Tarasenko is not on the team trip to Anaheim, but if he does not become at least a gametime decision for San Jose on Friday or the Senators on Sunday, then this roster move is questionable.

Hopefully, this is a clear indication that 91 will be skating up and down the Enterprise ice soon.