Klim Kostin: The Naughty List
Klim Kostin has been a strange player to monitor in the St. Louis Blues organization. Coaches and scouts talk so highly of the Russian winger, but he has yet to put it together a the NHL level.
He just completed a conditioning assignment with the Springfield Thunderbirds, where he recorded two points in three games, but he hasn’t completed his games with the Blues at the same pace.
Kostin is 22 years old and is a former first-round pick by the Blues in 2017. However, he has three goals, four assists, and seven points in 24 games in three different stints with the Blues in his career.
The lack of production may result from the roles he is playing on the team. He has not received significant time on the top lines for the Blues, but players like Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas have adapted well to similar situations.
This year has not been kind to Kostin. He scored both of his goals this season in one game and only has five points on the year in 18 games.
We’ll see if he cracks the lineup when the Blues come back to action, but it appears as though many of the injured forwards are close to returning, and that doesn’t bode well for the Russian winger’s return to the lineup.