Breaking down the St. Louis Blues' top prospects for the 2024-25 season

The St. Louis Blues now have one of the NHL's best prospect pools for the 2024-25 season, with plenty of young star players available to make their big league debut if needed. But with so many young guns, who's the best of the bunch, and what makes them a top contender for the opening night roster this October?

1. Jimmy Snuggerud, Minnesota

Take one look at this kid's numbers and you'd be surprised, almost very, that he hasn't made his NHL debut yet. In just seasons with college powerhouse Minnesota, Snuggerud bagged 42 goals and 84 points in 79 games. And the dominance doesn't just stay on the regular competition level either- Snuggerud has also totaled 10 goals and 21 points in 13 games for the United States in the last two World Junior Hockey Championship tournaments.

A 2022 first round selection by the Blues, the now 20-year-old Chaska, MN native could make his NHL debut sooner or later- it's up to the Blues themselves whether or not the junior superstar sniper is worth promoting.

2. Dalibor Dvorsky

The 19-year-old Slovakian has torn up the Ontario Hockey League with the Sudbury Wolves, playing in 52 games with 45 goals and 43 assists for 88 points. That may be quite a few games less due to injury or otherwise, but Dvorsky still has what it takes to make the NHL.

After all, he was just selected by the Blues 10th overall in last year's draft. When combined with his insane numbers and his double position ability of C/RW, Dvorsky is a likely candidate for 2024-25 Opening Night. Of course, like with Snuggerud, the Blues will make the final decision. But if they want goal scorers, Dvorsky and Snuggerud, for that matter, are the top picks for this season.

3. Zach Bolduc

Another junior-level star, the 21-year-old Trois-Rivieres native, recently made a full-time transition to the NHL after splitting the 2023-24 season with the Blues and their Springfield affiliate. Bolduc played in 25 games with the Blues last season, scoring five goals and four assists, while his final junior hockey season with the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League saw the center notch an astonishing 50 goals and 60 assists for 110 points in 61 games.

He kept that offensive firepower up as well during the Remparts' run to the Memorial Cup, awarded to Canada's best junior hockey team across the three major junior leagues: the QMJHL, the Western Hockey League, and the Ontario Hockey League. Bolduc managed 11 goals and eight assists for 19 points in 18 playoff games during the 2022-23 postseason. Furthermore, he notched similar regular and postseason numbers during his first season with the Remparts in 2021-22.

Other Blues prospects

Other notable Blues prospects include 2024 third round draft pick Adam Jecho, another talented offensive weapon from the WHL's Edmonton Oil Kings. The 18-year-old Czech was most likely the best selection by the Blues in this year's draft, with 23 goals and 24 assists for 47 points in 51 games, which was his first season with one of the WHL's biggest NHL factories.

One more Blues young gun, this time on the defensive side, is Shattuck St. Mary's Colin Ralph, also selected in the 2024 draft as a second round pick. The 18-year-old defenseman is currently committed to NCAA magnet St. Cloud State for the 2024-25 campaign after an eight-goal, 58 assists, and 66 points 2023-24 campaign for the top hockey boarding school in the US.