The Athletic released their fan-decided rankings for NHL broadcasts, and the St. Louis Blues finished at a solid 14th place--that's up five spots from a 19th place finish in last year's survey. The survey combines the scores (on a scale of 1 to 5) of local fans and national fans and, in a bit of surprise, national hockey fans ranked the Blues' broadcast team higher than the local fans. The Blues broadcast team of John Kelly on play-by-play and Jamie Rivers on color was ranked 12th nationally and 18th locally which, when considering the scores of other teams, put the Blues at 14th overall.
You may notice, then, that this survey was clearly completed before the controversial firing of John Kelly. Er, not firing, exactly, but a "parting of ways" that still doesn't feel all that mutual. Factor in the departure of Darren Pang in 2023 for a job with the Chicago Blackhawks, and the Blues' broadcast team has undergone quite a makeover in the last few years--and, to many fans, not for the better.
Next season, the Blues will be simulcasting with radio announcers Chris Kerber on play-by-play and Joey Vitale on analysis and color commentary. Both of them are quite good, but at the end of the day, radio and television are two very different media, and there may be an adjustment period for fans and the broadcasters themselves. Depending on how long it takes for folks to get used to the new format, we may see the Blues tumble down the list for next year's broadcast rankings.