Hours ago the trade deadline passed and the Blues didn't make a move (unless you count the move that the team made a day before the trade deadline which doesn't count because, shit, that doesn't fit the narrative).
As other teams around the Central Division loaded up with game-changing super star players—looking at you Paul Gaustad and Johnny Oduya, the Blues did not nothing. Nothing. We as Blues fans should march down to the Scottrade Center and protest like not-at-all spoiled Cardinals fans.
It's an outrage. And outrage I can't stand for anymore.
You know what, fuck it, no. I'm not gonna keep this up. It's a bullshit overreaction from dumb fans and ever dumber media.
Bernie Miklasz, a fan of Game Time and a guy I happen to be a fan of, tweeted the following.
Blues ownership. #fail
— Bernie Miklasz (@miklasz) February 27, 2012
I'm sorry, but fuck that. I'm not pro-ownership at all, but to blame the inactivity on the never-ending quest to sell the team is just part of narrative, and frankly it's wrong.
The market wasn't there. Period. Here's the Blues biggest need: a top-3 forward who can either score a lot of goals or set up a lot of goals. The Blues need a big offensive stud who averages something close to a point per game. If you don't follow hockey, and it seems like so many people bashing the Blues for not making moves don't (looking at you Joe Strauss), those guys don't grow on trees.
For a minute, Dustin Brown was on the market. He's a good player, but doesn't really fit the Blues needs. Everyone knows Rick Nash was on the market, but the Blue Jackets were seeking a super offer—an offer that would have likely started with Alex Pietrangelo which, no. Just no. That's a non-starter.
Here's the thing with the Blues that drive-by critics like Strauss fail to grasp—the whole fucking point of this rebuild was not to just make the playoffs. The Blues spent the entirety of my fanhood just trying to make the playoffs. The whole goal was to keep that dumb streak alive. Every year the Blues get in, got the revenue, and were out before the third round. Most of the time the Blues were never considered a true contender.
Once upon a time, the Blues built a great, great team. They had star players like Pavol Demitra, Pierre Turgeon, Al MacInnis and Chris Pronger in his absolute prime. They complimented the stars with great depth and burgeoning young talent. That team lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Sharks and the Blues panicked.
Instead of letting the team grow, the Blues traded away all the youth for guys who were supposed to be the missing pieces. Keith Tkachuk and Doug Weight were supposed to be the answer. They weren't.
After the lockout the Blues were really, really bad. They reached the bottom of the league and made a plan to get up to the top. Not to get back to the playoffs because, been there, done that.
This Blues team reminds me a lot of the 2008-09 Chicago Blackhawks. That Hawks team was the first good one in a while. The young talent was coming into its own and the Hawks were learning how to win. The team fired its coach early in the season and then went on a run. The Hawks went on to the Western Conference finals with pretty much the same team it had all season long—content to let the kids go to battle because they had earned it. After losing in the third round, Chicago addressed its biggest need in the offseason and signed Marian Hossa. After that, the Hawks won the Stanley Cup.
That's what the Blues need to do. They need to let this team make the playoffs and see what they got. This team may be made for the playoffs. This team may need to lose in the playoffs to be even hungrier. Shit, this team may need to lose in the playoffs for Doug Armstong to really see what this team needs.
The Blues didn't need to make a move today for some shitty old-ass defenseman like Roman Hamrlik. That guy's old and sucks. They didn't need to trade Ian Cole, Philip McRae and Jaden Schwartz for a fucking 20-goal scorer. The Nashville Predators dealt a first-round pick for Paul fucking Gaustad. Is that what you want, dumb fans?
This is a team built for not one run, but a series of runs. The two-headed monster in net are both 26. The best d-man probably still gets carded at R-rated movies. David Backes, T.J. Oshie and others are well under 30. Vladimir Tarasenko, Schwartz and other are on the way. This is not a team that needs to say, "Awww, fuck it" and go for it.
The Blues are building for the long haul. Finally, after a few years of it looking like it would never happen, progress is starting to show. Why fuck that up?
Blame ownership all you want, and the ownership DOES suck, but the fact is, Doug Armstrong made the right call. The market was all outta whack and the best decision for the Blues was to stand pat and go into the playoffs with the guys who have earned it.