The St. Louis Blues finished the 2025-26 season with a 37-33-12 record and a few points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference due to a competitive Central Division. Injuries played a role, sure, but plenty of players failed to live up to expectations: either veterans like Jordan Kyrou underperformed, or young players failed to take steps in time to save the season.
There are three players on the Blues roster that should be feeling more pressure than anyone else on the team--two of them newcomers. Sure, some veterans need to step up, but if this retool the Blues are trying to execute is to succeed, they need internal development from their young, high-ceiling players to get there.
Mason McTavish
The biggest acquisition of the offseason so far, McTavish needs to prove why he was a third-overall pick in the NHL draft. He had a disappointing season with the Anaheim Ducks last year (probably because GM Pat Verbeek's hardball negotiations caused McTavish to miss training camp), and found himself both a healthy scratch and moved to the wing. Considering the cost of two first-round picks to bring McTavish to St. Louis, he needs to demonstrate that he was worth it.
Connor McMichael
Another newcomer to the Blues, McMichael was a core part of the Jordan Kyrou trade return. On paper, going from Kyrou to McMichael is a downgrade; the hope is that McMichael can get back to the 26-goal scorer he was in 2024-25, and not the middling 14 he tallied last season. With a shiny new extension in his pocket, a lot of eyes will be on McMichael during his first season in St. Louis.
Logan Mailloux
Lastly, there's Mailloux. To say his 2025-26 season had some ups and downs would be a tremendous understatement: he was in and out of the lineup most nights, getting a few minutes when he was played, and a minus-19 at the start of January in just 28 games. Then, after the Winter Olympic break, something flipped, and Mailloux was one of the Blues' best defensemen to close out the season. He's going to be under pressure to show that the late surge we saw wasn't a mirage, and was truly a step forward in his development. Given that the Blues' defense is pretty suspect, the team's going to need him to continue to grow.
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