Now that the 2024-25 NHL season is over, it is time to look forward to next season and see what the St. Louis Blues can do to get closer to lifting Lord Stanley's Cup. The team does not need to make any big moves to get better. The Blues would benefit from adding a defender or two. However, the most significant improvement that could happen for the Blues is their young players taking another step forward in their development.
In all likelihood, Jimmy Snuggerud and Dalibor Dvorský will be full-time NHLers next season, which could add some excitement to the roster as they are two of the best prospects in the NHL. It will be tough to say how big of an impact Snuggerud and Dvorský will have in their rookie season, as there will be a learning curve. The pressure will be on two other young players on the Blues roster, Jake Neighbours and Zachary Bolduc.
When the season starts for the Blues, there will likely be a spot on the top line open for competition to see who will play alongside Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich. Based on how they played together last season, the Blues should keep the Dylan Holloway, Brayden Schenn, and Jordan Kyrou line together, at least for the start of next season. Unless the team miraculously signs or trades for a top winger, the spot on the top line will likely go to Neighbours or Bolduc.
Neighbours Build on Breakout But Still Has More to Prove
Neighbours had a breakout 2023-24 season. He recorded 27 goals and 38 points in 77 games. While the points do not jump off the page as impressive, the 27 goals in his first full NHL season were something to be impressed about. There were expectations that Neighbours could be a perennial 30-goal scorer as soon as this season, but his goal total took a bit of a dip in 2024-25.
Neighbours' assists and points went up this season, finishing with 22 assists and 46 points, but his goal total dropped to 22. Neighbours spent some time on the top line last season, whether because of injuries or trying out new line combinations, but did not seize the moment with his opportunity. He will need to be more consistent if he wants to be a regular on the Blues' first line, but we have seen that he has the goal-scoring ability to fit alongside Thomas and Buchnevich.
Bolduc Found His Stride When It Mattered Most
Bolduc struggled early in the 2024-25 campaign but picked up his play down the stretch when the Blues were fighting for a playoff spot. Bolduc had eight goals and 20 points at the 50-game mark but added 11 goals and five assists in his final 22 games. It was Bolduc's first full season in the NHL, so you should expect his play to be up and down while he learns the pro game, but the way he finished the season showed the potential to be a top-6 winger.
Bolduc has scored goals at every level he has played, eclipsing the 50-plus goal mark twice as a member of the Québec Remparts in the QMJHL. Once he found his footing in the NHL, Bolduc showed that, like Neighbours, he could be a legitimate 30-goal-a-season scorer. Bolduc had his growing pains this season, but the Blues need him to take another step in his development if the team wants to be legitimate contenders next season.
Consistency from the Kids Could Spark a Contender
Both Neighbours and Bolduc have the potential to be good players for a long time, but both need to be more consistent if the team wants to go from squeaking into the playoffs to Stanley Cup contenders. Both can score goals, but I would give the edge to Bolduc in that category, as his junior scoring pedigree speaks for itself. Neighbours can do a little of everything. In his junior career, he was more of a playmaker, but so far in the NHL, he has been more of a goalscorer.
Both need to take a big step forward in the progression next season, but the potential is there. If the young guys can bring more secondary scoring, it could help relieve some pressure on the big guns and make them a team that could roll three lines that can score. The future is bright in St. Louis, and if Neighbours and Bolduc can take a step forward next season, they can become real contenders earlier than expected.