The St. Louis Blues have been a whirlwind in October, and their final game of the month will take place tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers. Given their roller coaster ride so far, tonight’s game will decide whether the Blues enter November over 0.500, under 0.500, or, in the case of a “loser point,” at 0.500.
Many of you will care more about what happens on the ice tonight as opposed to any off-the-ice ranking that I’m about to share with you courtesy of Sportico. But some of you may find this one rather intriguing, as the Blues found themselves among the biggest movers in franchise valuations for the 2024-25 season.
The Blues, who ranked 26th in the league last season, moved up two spots, tying them as the fifth-biggest mover up the rankings in the league. Now sitting at 24th, the Blues value increased an incredible 35 percent and has now reached the $1.3 billion mark.
That said, if they want to keep moving up methodically, they’ll have their work cut out for them as the Nashville Predators ($1.32 billion) and San Jose Sharks ($1.42 billion) sit at 23rd and 22nd, respectively. Still, this is a big win for the Blues as a franchise.
St. Louis Blues moved up in the rankings but how did other teams fare?
Per usual, the Toronto Maple Leafs lead the league at $3.66 billion, with the NY Rangers ($3.25 billion) sidling in second place. For years, the Arizona Coyotes graced the bottom of these rankings, but the new Utah Hockey Club took their place and, along with the Dallas Stars, moved up four spots as the biggest overall movers.
Utah began its inaugural season in 28th place, and they could continue their rapid climb should the franchise build a strong and long-lasting fanbase in and outside of Salt Lake City. This left the Columbus Blue Jackets clocking in at No. 32 with a valuation worth just $1.06 billion. The Blue Jackets could find themselves in the basement for a while, as the No. 31 team on the list, the Winnipeg Jets, sit at $1.1 billion.
These numbers may not be as interesting to some, but if you’re a fan who’s curious about the business side of the Blues and the rest of the NHL, they’re always fun to look at and see where the team resides.