Oh, the St. Louis Blues have been one of those up and down; you never know what they’re going to do kind of teams in 2024-25. But St. Louis has a lot of pieces in place, to the point that it’s not too farfetched to believe they won’t make a run if the timing and circumstances are right as the season hits its second half.
One way for that to occur is if the Blues heavy hitters start playing better hockey. And you know who I’m talking about: The likes of Robert Thomas, Jordan Kyrou, Pavel Buchnevich, Dylan Holloway, and Colton Parayko must keep playing at a monster level, but so does one other player who’s been catching my eye.
So, who’s that? Philip Brobeg? Jake Neighbours? Brandon Saad? Actually, I can see general manager Doug Armstrong finding a way to get a bit of a ransom for Saad despite the down season. Hey, he’s Doug Armstrong. Need I say more? So, who cares if the guy’s been struggling this season?
The answer to the question I posted above is ‘none of the above.’ Don’t get me wrong: We need to see productivity from every name I mentioned. But if Zachary Bolduc can get hot, AND those heavy hitters can play that monster game during the back half of 2024-25, I don’t mind the Blues chances.
One young forward could help catapult the St. Louis Blues, if…
Bolduc may only have five goals and 12 points in 31 games, and that may cause many of you to scoff at this honorable mention. But prior to Friday night’s game, Bolduc put up six points and four goals between November 25th and December 23rd, indicating that he’s learning how to produce more in the NHL.
Yeah, that productivity has been inconsistent at times, especially in more recent games. But, that’s not the point I’m trying to make here. Instead, it’s the fact that we’ve seen a better player across a span in which the Blues were 7-4-3 (17 points).
Not the best record, but in games when Bolduc had gotten a point in that stretch, St. Louis was 3-1-1. That’s something to keep an eye on for the second half of the campaign, especially if the Blues have been primarily winning lately when Bolduc gets on the scoring sheet.
Either way, if Bolduc continues to produce, it’ll become clear beyond the shadow of a doubt that he’s yet another strong asset to the young core Doug Armstrong has built during this entire retool. And that alone should excite Blues fans who didn’t have to see their team go through a complete rebuilding effort.