While it may not be who you think, Brayden Schenn has led the Blues over the past 10 years as the highest point scorer. In that time, he has the second most games played at 589 (behind Colton Parayko) and leads the club in points since 2015-16 with 437, despite not joining the club until 2017.
Schenn has been a key pillar of stability with the Blues in his time, and his consistent and heavy play style has been fun to watch and essential for establishing the tone on ice. While the true stars led the way year-to-year in point scoring, Schenn remained in the background as the role player who enabled that greatness, becoming an irreplaceable part of this team in the process.
Brayden Schenn's legacy should be one of respect, having earned it after constant grinding and hard work to push through and play almost every game in every season, and it paid off in him becoming the top point scorer for the Blues over the last decade.
Consistency is king
Schenn's game was never as flashy as some of the Blues top talent, and his highlight reel is not quite as impressive as some of the other Blues greats. However, that doesn't matter when analyzing a single player's impact on the ice, and Schenn exemplifies this revelation.
Schenn has the most games played of all forwards in this time span, meaning he has been consistently available and ready for the team. This gave him a path towards consistent minutes and playing time, where he did not disappoint.
Schenn's role on the ice mirrors how his teammates talk about him off the ice. He is an all-around team player, always looking to uplift those around him into becoming more perfect versions of themselves. On the ice, he plays strong after the puck and is always looking for an opening that he created by distracting the opposing defense, setting up a teammate for a goal-scoring opportunity.
What is most surprising about Schenn is his consistent availability and work ethic. Simply put, he does not take days off. Schenn has missed a total of 30 games in the past 8 seasons, a number that an individual player could miss in only one or two regular seasons. They say the best ability is availability, and Schenn clearly took this saying to heart and puts his best effort in day in and day out.
This unending work ethic and consistency for #10 earned him the second greatest award of his career, behind the Stanley Cup, of course.
Earning the captaincy
When the time came around to choose a new successor, Schenn's complimentary style of play and consistency of effort made him a no-brainer for the captaincy to those within the Blues organization.
When looking at it from a zoomed-out point of view, it should have been obvious to fans who the next captain was going to be. Nobody has meant more to the Blues and how they operate than Brayden Schenn, the lynchpin of the organization.
His time working hard for the club earned him the respect of his peers and the front office long before he ever wore the C, and looking back, it only makes sense why they chose him.
Schenn represents Blues hockey in so many ways. As a blue-collar city, St. Louis knows and appreciates the value of hard work. Schenn represents hard work for the Blues over the past decade or so, never taking a day off and playing through hardship despite the odds.
We respect those who put in the time and dedication and remain feverishly loyal to their club through the good times and the bad. When trade rumors arose surrounding Brayden Schenn, he knew there was only one place he wanted to play and expressed his thoughts as such.
And in St. Louis, we like to pay our dues and make sure those who represent do things the right way get what they deserve. It only made sense for Schenn to wear the C.