The St. Louis Blues took a hacksaw to their preseason roster yesterday, cutting a whopping 20 players in one fell swoop. Eighteen players were loaned back to the AHL affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds, and two were returned to their junior clubs.
Returning to Springfield are forwards Nikita Alexandrov, Jakub Stancl, Hugh McGing, Matthew Peca, Juraj Pekarcik, Dylan Peterson, Simon Robertsson, Sam Stange, Nikita Susuev, Sam Bitten, and Christopher Wagner. The defensemen returning to the AHL are Michael Buchinger, Quinton Burns, Marc-Andre Gaudet, Samuel Johannesson, and Anthony Kehrer. Two goaltenders, Will Cranley and Vadim Zherenko, are going down as well.
There aren't really any surprises here; all of these players were extreme longshots to make the NHL in the first place, and the young players--like Stancl and Pekarcik--are clearly not yet ready to play in the NHL night in and night out.
More notable than the AHL loans are the two players returned to their junior teams: Justin Carbonneau (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, QMJHL) and Adam Jiricek (Brantford, OHL). Carbonneau put up a couple of points during his preseason audition and came with a mind to make the team, but, as we wrote yesterday, returning him to juniors is the correct decision at this stage of his development. As for Jiricek, defensemen generally take more time to develop and become NHL-ready, so the Blues' 2024 first-round pick didn't have much chance to make the big club out of camp.
Some may be disappointed to see the young players' NHL debuts delayed, but it's a testament to the current roster: there's no need to rush these players to the big leagues, as GM Doug Armstrong's active offseason is paying dividends. The prospects can develop at their own pace while the Blues remain competitive.