The St. Louis Blues are off to yet another slow start to their season after Thursday's home opener loss to the San Jose Sharks. Much has been said about the top line's struggles to start the season, but a recently named assistant captain has also gone unnoticed through the first four games.
When the Blues named Jake Neighbours an assistant captain before the season started, many Blues fans were given reason to be excited. Neighbors has been a fan favorite since he debuted in 2021 because of his approach to the game. His style of play mirrors the city's moniker. He plays with a slight edge, always outworking opponents, is tough to get off the puck, sticks up for his teammates, and produces while doing so. However, like many of the Blues' top players, Neighbours has struggled out of the gate and will need to make an impact if the team is to turn its season around.
Neighbours' lack of production
Like several of the Blues' top players, Neighbors has started the season with zero goals and zero assists. If the Blues want to succeed this year, they'll need secondary scoring throughout their lineup. New additions Connor McMichael and Mason McTavish have done their part to fill the stat sheet over four games amid the top line's struggles, but beyond the two newcomers, the Blues' lineup hasn't been scoring much.
Alongside Neighbours, Captain Robert Thomas, fellow assistant captain Dylan Holloway, and power-play quarterback Cam Fowler are all scoreless through four games. While many have scrutinized Thomas and Holloway, given their top-line status and captaincy, Neighbours can also be put in with that group for his lack of production in both full-strength and on the power play. His four shots on goal and nine shot attempts through four games put him eighth among forwards and thirteenth overall on the team behind the likes of fourth-line center Pius Suter and defenseman Colton Parayko. If the Blues are to be taken as a serious playoff contender, Neighbours will need to be an integral part of the team's secondary scoring, scoring gritty goals in front of the net, and capitalizing on the power play as he has in years past.
Outside the stat sheet
Neighbours has always been a spark plug player who can ignite the team when others struggle to produce. His battle-tested attitude has consistently produced scrappy goals, effective board scrums that lead to assists, and, outside the box score, his presence on the ice is always felt through his high motor, willingness to play gritty Blues hockey, and eagerness to get into fights that spark the Blues' bench. Yet, Neighbors has gone largely unnoticed in all those areas so far this season. In the season opener, he got into a scrap with Dallas Stars forward Arttu Hyty in the Blues' 4-0 win in Dallas. Since then, Neighbours has gone relatively unnoticed on the ice.
With the new additions of McMichael and McTavish and the emergence of Jonathan Berggren, Neighbours has seen a decline in ice time early in the season. A player who was once a regular in the Blues' top six now averages just over 14 minutes a night on the third line, is not on the penalty kill, the Blues' best unit this season, and is not contributing on the power play. It is fair to say Neighbours' start has been less than ideal.
The Blues clearly value the qualities Neighbors brings on and off the ice, or they wouldn't have given him an 'A' when reshaping their leadership group. He plays the style that head coach Jim Montgomery wants to implement for this team, and he is trusted by the coaching staff. That said, if the Blues want to find consistency after this early rough start, Neighbours has to be a driving force to turn things around.
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