The St. Louis Blues got off to a strong start in their 25-game sprint to the finish of the 2025-26 season with a 5-1 victory over Seattle. One of the main components of that victory was the return of Dylan Holloway.
One of the most important takeaways from the huge home victory was that this re-emergence of Holloway had an everlasting impact not only on his future this season, but beyond that and into the next era of Blues hockey.
Man, did this team miss a healthy Holloway in the lineup.
Hat-trick for No.81
Holloway capped off his return to the Blues with a beautiful hat-trick. He netted two goals on Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer, and then ended the game with an empty-netter to seal the game for good.
This was the second hat-trick of his career, with the first coming on December 23, 2024, against Detroit. He also added an assist to give himself a four-point night.
100 points in career milestone
During this game, Holloway hit a major milestone as he eclipsed the 100-point mark for his career. It is amazing that he scored 84 of them with the Blues in 112 games played, and only mustered 18 points in 89 games with the Edmonton Oilers.
What a comeback for a player that the Oilers were nearly ready to give up on.
Lock him down long-term?
This iconic performance screams out one thing from Blues fans everywhere. Show Holloway the money, and keep him in the 'Lou long term. Alongside fellow offer-sheet recipient Philip Broberg from Edmonton, GM Doug Armstrong has to lock down Holloway for a long-term deal. He has earned it.
What that could look like is up for discussion. He is leaving a contract that he signed with St. Louis when he was acquired, which was a two-year deal worth $2.29 million AAV. He has 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points in 35 games played this season.
The injury bug is a bit of a concern, but when he is on the ice, he is nearly irreplaceable. A five-year deal worth an AAV of $5 million might be enough to keep him in St. Louis and not handicap this team in terms of salary cap.