The St. Louis Blues with and without Jim Montgomery are two completely different teams
Jim Montgomery already had an impressive career record before turning around a hapless franchise in St. Louis and setting a franchise record.
During his head coaching tenure, up through the franchise record 12-game win streak, Montgomery and the Blues went 34-16-6, a highly impressive mark. This is a marked improvement from the club's 9-12-1 pace under Drew Bannister.
Montgomery has led a much more impressive system and style of play for the team, resulting in improvements in many key statistics. Per Natural Stat Trick, the Blues under Montgomery's coaching (between Nov. 25-April 5, the last game of the winning streak) led the league in goals-for percentage, one key offensive statistic. They also led in some defensive metrics, registering at 4th in goals against and 5th in expected goals against. Furthermore, they allowed the 3rd fewest high-danger chances against, all bolstered by goalies Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer registering the 2nd-highest save% % in the league as a tandem during this stretch.
Has Doug Armstrong built a hockey-playing machine in St. Louis?
The Blues set a franchise record 12 straight wins on April 5th, taking down a tough divisional opponent in the Colorado Avalanche.
Some criticism was leveled at the team for mostly playing uncompetitive teams during their hot streak, calling it more luck of scheduling than actual skill.
Looking at Montgomery's numbers with the club, it's clear the winning streak was not only the result of luck; it was the blossoming of a true threat in the Western Conference.
This was all due to several key additions to the club and the improvement from internally drafted and developed pieces. Dylan Holloway saw a massive stretch of success during this period, Cam Fowler proved to be an essential addition this season, and established players like Robert Thomas, Jordan Kyrou, and Jordan Binnington led the way and brought the squad together to set an NHL-best mark this season and a franchise record.
How high can this St. Louis Blues team reach?
With one game remaining in the season, the Blues seem all but a lock for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, returning for the first time since 2022. If they can lock down the season at home against Utah, they will have fought their way back from adversity as one of the worst teams in the league to a truly dangerous club in the Western Conference.
With Doug Armstrong's tenure quickly coming to a close as general manager of the Blues with Alex Steen waiting in the wings to take over, Armstrong had some big questions to answer this previous offseason about the direction of the franchise, given his legacy and timeline. In response, Armstrong and Steen put together one of the best rosters in the league when there seemed to be no chance of competing in a wildly difficult Central Division.
If this season has taught us anything, it is a reminder that the St. Louis Blues are and have been one of the premier organizations in the NHL. The Blues have been one of the winningest teams in hockey in this millennium, including an infamous cup run in 2019, but after their last playoff berth, it seemed like dark times were approaching hockey in St. Louis.
Instead, after just one season, the next core of Blues greats is ready to take the ice wearing the note for a long time. With Jim Montgomery signed for at least another 4 years (and likely as long as he'd like after that), it looks like the St. Louis Blues have earned their way back to becoming one of the biggest threats in the Western Conference and the NHL.