Plenty has been made about the St. Louis Blues’ utilization of two offer sheets last summer. They signed forward Dylan Holloway and defender Philip Broberg away from the Edmonton Oilers, and even dealt the Oilers defense prospect Paul Fischer and a 2028 third-round pick for their compliance. The move proved to be successful beyond anyone’s expectations, with Broberg and Holloway each stepping up as thee man at their position through multiple points in the year. On the heels of a big payout, general manager Doug Armstrong and successor-to-be Alexander Steen have leaned fully into change.
The effects were immediate. St. Louis was well outside of playoff standing at the end of the 2023-24 season, and didn’t appear improved enough to sway that headed into the 2024-25 campaign. But with two new faces leading the charge, the team surged to a promising 18-17-4 record through the first half, even despite a November injury to Broberg. That was encouraging enough to push Armstrong to trade for former top-pair defenseman Cam Fowler, finally pulling him away from years of middling with the Anaheim Ducks.
The move, again, worked to perfection. With Broberg and Justin Faulk on one pair, Fowler was paired up with red-hot Colton Parayko, and the former-Duck worked his way to an impressive 36 points in 51 games before the end of St. Louis’ season. The move to acquire Fowler was another low-bet, high-reward gamble, coming at the price of a 2027 second-round pick that was offset by the Blues receiving a fourth-round pick in return. It was also yet another feather in Armstrong’s trade belt that sparked a continued desire for shaking things up. St. Louis waived Brandon Saad in January to make additional room for rookies like Zachary Bolduc, Dalibor Dvorsky, and – more intently – Jimmy Snuggerud. All three showed strong flashes, and affirmed Armstrong’s decision to bet on red.
The spirit of change can not get tied down by sentiment. Even with Bolduc breaking into the league with 19 goals and 36 points, Armstrong opted to move him to the Montreal Canadiens for a right-defense solution in Logan Mailloux this summer. The move headlines a heap of continued changes this off-season, which includes the additions of Pius Suter and Nick Bjugstad; and the subtractions of Radek Faksa and Nick Leddy.
The Blues are now positioned to enter next season with at least three summer additions in tow – a number that could rise following trade speculation for winger Jordan Kyrou. Those numbers don’t include any potential young standouts at training camp, and it doesn’t seem out of the question that one of Dvorsky, Justin Carbonneau, Nikita Alexandrov, or Aleksanteri Kaskimaki make the team out of camp.
Soon, the Blues will go through more change as Armstrong steps down from his decade-long post for rookie GM Steen – a move that’s expected to occur next summer. That will be plenty of a spark to continue the club’s drive for change, new looks, and new opportunity. They returned to the postseason – but to a quick exit – this season. It will be the duty of a retooled lineup to continue one step forward this season. If they can, the Blues’ eye for risks could land the team quickly back to the perennial playoff position they’ve enjoyed for much of the last 15 years.