The St. Louis Blues are one of the hottest teams in the NHL, sporting a 7-2-1 record in the 10 games since the Olympic Break. They've outscored their opponents 30-19, are getting lights-out goaltending from their tandem, and their blue liners have been stepping up. While this late-season stretch of winning could derail a premium draft pick, perhaps there's reason to believe the Blues could simply reload this summer, instead of committing to a full teardown--and it starts at the top of the lineup.
Robert Thomas, Dylan Holloway, and Jimmy Snuggerud have been on fire in recent weeks, with Snuggerud earning some recognition from the NHL for his outstanding play. Here's a quick rundown of their stats, since the Olympic break:
Robert Thomas: five goals, six assists, 11 points, plus-14 goal differential in eight games (he missed the first two due to injury)
Dylan Holloway: six goals, seven assists, 13 points, plus-14 goal differential in 10 games
Jimmy Snuggerud: five goals, six assists, 11 points, plus-8 goal differential in 10 games
This dynamic trio's scoring rate has been a key reason the Blues are winning games now, and odds are that, if kept together next season, they'd be able to sustain that level of production to some degree.
So how does that affect the front office's offseason decisions?
Thomas, in particular, was involved in numerous trade discussions around the NHL--including a deal that seemed close to getting done with the Buffalo Sabres. When the dust settled from the deadline, the Blues emerged without two leaders (Brayden Schenn and Justin Faulk), and added two additional first-round picks in the upcoming 2026 draft; they now have three total, including their own (likely very high) selection.
That means the Blues face a crossroads this summer: use those extra draft picks to add premium prospects to a middling system entering a rebuild, or trade them to upgrade the current roster and reload for next season.
It's easy to envision the front office buying into these wins at the tail end of the season and thinking they can build around Thomas and other high-end players already here. First-round selections carry a lot of weight around the league, and the two the Blues have added could be used as the centerpieces for major upgrades on the roster. If management opts for this course, it means they believe they can build a contender around Thomas and Jordan Kyrou while they're in their primes, that Joel Hofer is ready to be the guy in net moving forward, and that the upcoming crop of prospects (Dalibor Dvorsky, Justin Carbonneau, Adam Jiricek etc.) are capable of being impactful NHL players in the next season or two. There's a path for this team to turn things around by this time next year.
Alternatively, the Blues can make those draft picks themselves, adding some premium talent to their prospect pipeline and punting contention a few years down the road. This approach likely means revisiting trade talks around Thomas, Kyrou, and maybe even Colton Parayko if he's kept more in the loop with management. A Thomas trade alone could bring in more than draft capital, but also high-end, young players and prospects already deep in their developmental timelines. Going this route would mean some painful, uninspiring hockey over the next couple of years--but it could also mean a team that has, ultimately, a much higher ceiling than retooling around the current roster.
Both roads carry risk, and there are strong arguments in favor of each. A few weeks ago, the team looked cooked, and it appeared some dramatic changes would be necessary. This winning streak--and a clear top line entering the mix--may give management pause: maybe they can actually turn this ship around over the summer with some shrewd trades and signings. After how this season's gone, however, the team has not earned the benefit of the doubt, and sweeping changes may still be necessary. Either way, these recent wins have made management's job in the offseason a lot more difficult.