Why Sitting On A Lead Sucks: Blues Fall At Home Again.

The Blues can’t play a full 60 minutes, obviously it’s the coaching at fault.

Fire Payne.

/honestly, isn’t this the same type of game that got AM fired?

The problem with re-signing Carlo is, your probably taking a roster spot away fron Junland or Pietrangelo (Unless we buy out Brewer, which I’m actually against at this point. Not an overly noticable player, but talented enough that I think he’s making a positive contribution for the most part). And I’m starting to become concerned how much longer Junland will wait before he heads back overseas to play there. I personally wouldn’t mind us letting Alex play in Peoria next year, though most will disagree with that. So it’s simply a matter of depth.

Perron… Honestly, out of our top forward prospects, he’s my least favorite. Berglund has had a quiet year, but it just feels like a hiccup to me, Eller is someone I have very high expectations for, and I very rarely find anything in TJ Oshies game I dislike. But Perron… man if he doesn’t seem half ass sometimes. Which isn’t that major of a problem, but it’s just something that I find concerning for a young player. If he’s half assing it during a game, why shouldn’t I think he’s half assing it in practice? And if he’s half assing it in practice, he’s probably not going to reach his full potential. Course I could be 100% wrong, but you asked for discussion points, so I’m discussing.

I think Oshie has the upside to surpass the 20-40 point, maybe more of a 30-60 player if things go right. In fact, I think we will eventually think of him as a David Backes type level of awesome, just in a smaller package. Love me some Teej.

Kariya is someone who I’m open to bringing back at around a 2.5 mill price tag. I’m not particularly in love with any of the free agent forwards this year (And I’d activly dread us signing Kovalchuk at this point). I could see 3 mill, if it was a 1 year deal.

Personally speaking, I just don’t buy Chris Mason as a legitimate No.1 starter. Then again, I’m not sure who else will be out there this off-season that I would either (Harding is a possibility, but what level of draft pick would we have to give up to acquire him?)

Payne…. Honestly, I say full time. He’s done a solid job, but he has to get it through to the players you have to play a full season, not just the 2nd half. Maybe if we miss the playoffs, it’ll get through.

Oh, and we beat Detroit 5-2, giving us hope for a return, before they dash it by blowing a lead in a game at home shortly after.

I’ll blame myself. Maybe my father’s bad luck when he watches the Blues is passing down to me.

Hell, this may have given me an idea for a write-up . . .

Anyway. Fucking Goddamn shit-tossing ass-flinging douchetards did that suck the horse cock. Argh.

When we’re kicking everyone’s asses in a few years, I’m gonna laugh about this season.

1. Keep Splodeybones. If he comes back next year, you’ve got him, Johnson, Brewer, Polak, and Jackman. I say bring Weaver back as well, and let Pietrangelo, Junland and Strachan battle it out for the seventh spot. I understand the concern with wondering how long Junland will keep coming back before he decides to go home to the chocolate factory, but he’s really just not quite ready yet.

2. Perron is just fine. I completely reject the notion espoused by ‘Cain that he might be “half-assing it” in practice. I don’t believe for a second that Tkachuk, Jackman, Brewer, McClement and Backes would allow that to happen without doing something about it, and I don’t believe for a second that Davis Pane would play Perron as much as he does if that’s what he was doing.

Perron is what he is; a confident-to-the-point-of-cockiness kid with talent oozing out of his pores. You don’t try to make a square peg like that fit a round hole; that’s what got Murray fired. Frustrating as it might be on the nights when it’s not clicking, the best way for a player like that to be effective is to leave him alone and let him do what he does. The coaches that “get” that are the ones who can have success with players like Perron.

3. Oshie. I see TJ as a 25-goal, 50-60 point guy on a regular basis, as soon as next season. His “career year” will be 30 goals and 80 points, and he might do that more than once.

4. Agree with ‘Cain on Kariya; bring him back for $2.5 – 3 MM on a short-term deal. Keep him with Oshie and Backes for a full year, and there’s no reason to think they can’t be a very dangerous line. Again, who knew… keeping players together consistently allows them to develop chemistry and a more instinctive understanding of where each guy is going to be in any given situation. As smart as Andy Murray clearly is, I’m baffled as to why he never seemed to “get” that…

5. God bless Chris Mason for all he’s done to help the Blues get back to respectability, but I agree with ‘Cain again… I just don’t see him as a legitimate “scary” No. 1 goalie. I’d be willing to go to the draft offering a swap of first-round picks, along with Bishop and one of our Minnesota-born prospects, to Minnesota for Harding.

6. This is The House Of Payne, and should be for several years to come. Bring him back as the full-time coach, remove the “interim” tag, and let him hire his own assistants.

B.

• Cola will probably be gone. After drafting seemingly nothing but d-men for the last decade, shouldn’t someone be ready to step in right now and fill his spot for a fraction of the cost? Ideally, Cola could be around for one or two years and then a prospect could fully take his place, but he’s not gonna sign a one-year deal.

• Perron is getting better. He’s turning a corner this season. Next year I think he make the jump toward super-stardom.

• Oshie’s production is always going to be limited by his PK ability. He’s very valuable as a two-way player so that will lessen his ice time on the PP and at even strength.

• No on Kariya. He’s going down hill and his money should go to resigning Perron, EJ, Berg etc. One month of inspired play doesnt erase two-plus years of him playing like garbage.

• Mason is not the answer. He’s a very good backup, but can’t start more than 40 games a year.

• Payne has to stay. Give him an offseason to put some work in and put in his own system.

as the same type of mold like Hull. Not saying he’ll be a superstar but he’s the kind of player that floats around and doesn’t look like he’s trying hard when he is seeing everything.

I’m on the fence about Kariya. He’s been playing good lately and has chemistry with Oshie and Backes. But, who’s to say he won’t get hurt in the beginning of next season if he’s resigned. Of course, whoever would take his place could get injured too and if it’s another kid how will he do?

i still hate giving peeps props for 2 weeks of work, including payne.

you didnt touch on the steen problem too. the problem is he is scoring like a top liner but not playing on a top line, if the blues don;]’t start giving that kid #1 line minutes to see what he can do there and THEN sign him to a contraact assuming he is a top 2 line player….

even with penalty kill AND power play work alex is doing less than 16 minutes a game this season.now over his last 10 games he has averaged about a shift more than that. but still if the blues want to pencil him in as a top winger, i wanna see 20 minutes a few times

AaaaaaRGGGGGHHHHHHH

I can’t sit through a season like this and then watch them resign the guys that have been part of this terrible home record. That wouldn’t make any sense. We got to see how this team performed while it was healthy for an entire season, the chemistry isn’t right, so changes need to be made. Save the money for the big contracts coming up for the young guys.

^^^This

This team is way too comfortable losing. I was watching the post game interview with Backes and I’m thinking where’s the pride? Where the rage at blowing yet another 3rd period lead at home? I should have been seeing furniture being tossed around and some cursing at least in the background. Instead I got the same excuses and “we still got time” BS. I’d of been choking the god damn reporter at least for interrupting my tirade. The GDT showed the raw emotion of the huge let down, where are the Blues?

Walnuts, I’ve always said PK’s not the same player since Stevens put him in tweety bird land. Lately though I see some magic with him, Teej and Backes. Is it enough to keep him around for 2 large? I dunno. He’s a crap shoot in my opinion and one good head shot away from the end of his career. Like Happy Meal he has the wheels to create space and make some nifty plays.

Mr. Dangles is just like Hull as mentioned and needs the same “Handle With Care” label attached to his azz. The kid has the potential to be a superstar, I hope it happens in San Louie.

Mason. Goalies have to give you confidence, you can’t have any lingering doubts. Mason makes me fret like a teen age girl’s father. Let him go and find our rock with someone else.

Payne. Too early to tell but it appears he’s a decent coach that was sucked into an ugly situation and made the best of it.

You just never knew which ditch you were going to veer off into.

First of all I would like to see Cola stay. That being said, I don’t know with all the D-men we have in the pipelines that we have room for him. I think us resigning him depends a LOT on how much we want to rush Petro. Cola is the most offensive defenseman we have at this point, and we will already have a spot to fill with Sydor being gone.

2. I think Perron is going to be phenominal. YOu can see the flashes of greatness in his game, and think its just a matter of time until he gets enough confidence in that game until it really solidifies. Once that happens, he’s going to be a BEAST!

3.Oshie is another great player. I’ve been saying it for a while and you all have been with me, but this kid line is going to be one of the best in the NHL in years to come. These guys are going to be the bane of teams for a LONG time.

4. I say Kariya stays only if you get a Tkachuk level discount. Sure he’s saying the right things about the team, but what person says the wrong things? Its just business sense. He is showing some magic with Oshie and Backes, but again, its hard to tell what to do. I say if you get him for around 2-2.5mil then maybe, but nothing over that. He’s just such a gamble with injuries at this point. I think we will need some veteran leadership for our forwards however.

5. Mason is an enigma to me. He can play amazing hockey for a few games then falls on his face like Colorado. I’m still not sure if last years run was a fluke, or he can play at that level. We see flashes of brilliance in his game that seems like they are to often to be just a fluke, yet he lets in some goals that I’m fairly certain I could stop. I don’t see them signing him to anything long-term if they do keep him, and as stated before, I don’t see to many other options out-there however.

6. I think Payne is a good choice for coach. If nothing else, give him a one year deal as head coach and let him bring his own assisstants and see how he does. It seems like he’s working pretty well with the team, so we’ll see how it goes. Again, there really isn’t anyone else out there who you trust the team to.

7. We beat the wings, then they screw it up later and like they always do. Hopefully detroit catches fire and we are rid of the problem.