When you put up nine points and five goals in 25 contests, it doesn’t look great on paper, but that was all Zack Bolduc gave the St. Louis Blues last season. But, consider his 12:01 average total ice time, plus the fact these were his first 25 career games, and five goals and nine points look a lot better.
I’m not a fan of math and never will be, but I like adjusting statistics to 82 contests. So, in Bolduc’s case, he would have been on pace for at least 16 goals and roughly 30 points, and those aren’t bad numbers when you further factor in the aging team he was playing for. If the Blues were younger last year and had given Bolduc a longer look, chances are that the 16-goal, 30-point pace would have been a benchmark.
You could sit there and say this is all pure speculation, and a couple of weeks ago, you would have been right. But now, a few games into the preseason, and it’s hard to name a better prospect than Bolduc.
Lou Korac of The Hockey News has also taken notice of Bolduc’s play. Following the Blues loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, Korac said, “Bolduc was a shooter tonight, and even in saying that despite leading the Blues with six shots on goal on 11 attempts, he can fire it more. But early in the game playing with Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, he looked comfortable there, and Bolduc had dangerous early in the game.”
Zack Bolduc is steadily proving he deserves to be with the St. Louis Blues
The gritty play we’re seeing from Bolduc, especially on the Thomas line alongside Jordan Kyrou, could be a preview of where he could end up in the regular season should he earn a spot on the Blues. Sure, Robert Thomas and Kyrou are likely first-liners, and while one may find it farfetched to give Bolduc so much ice time, if he seems to be a good fit there in the preseason, why not give him the chance?
Six shots that reached the net and 11 attempts, plus the fact Bolduc was pretty good at scoring, albeit being forced to show what he could do in a limited sample size last year, tells us he’s an offensive-oriented player, but we also saw he can play a good game in all three zones.
We know how good Kyrou can be when he wants to, and Thomas showed us he’s one of the NHL’s better fast-rising centers. Both remain young players, and it’s clear they have chemistry with Bolduc, who could give the Blues a solid first line in 2024-25, even if many would scoff at it on paper.
This would give us a mystery of what to do with Pavel Buchnevich, but the newly re-signed forward would drop to the second line, where he could play center or wing. Placing Bolduc, if he continues to impress, on the first line also gives the Blues options of what to do with players like Jake Neighbours, Brayden Schenn, and Brandon Saad.
So, let’s keep monitoring Bolduc’s performances this year, and if they continue to point north, the Blues could be deep when the regular season arrives next month.