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John Buccigross, who is - like many of us - bored over the summer break, revisited his 2009 Hockey Mt. Rushmore column to revise and tweak based on events in the last six seasons.
It's interesting to see how some have updated, and how some are no longer with us - The Atlanta Thrashers are apparently the only offensive thing being sandblasted off of the side of a mountain this year in Georgia. The Blues? No changes. Zip. Nothing to call for the removal of Brett Hull, Brian Sutter, Al MacInnis, and Bernie Federko (not that I would advocate for their removal anyway):
2009 team/theory: Bernie Federko, Brett Hull, Al MacInnis and Brian Sutter. Federko was not a compelling player, but he had excellent numbers, and those numbers didn't fall in the playoffs. Hull was the most compelling player in Blues history. MacInnis' lone Norris Trophy came in St. Louis. I thought about Chris Pronger, but I have a soft spot for those tough Norris Division players who also scored. Only Hull and Federko scored more goals as a Blue than Sutter.
2015: Since the Blues fired Joel Quenneville late in the 2003-04 season, they've won one playoff series. One. That's mediocrity. Vladimir Tarasenko might be able to change that and help bump Brian Sutter off the mountain by continuing to score around the 40-goal mark and helping the Blues advance in the postseason. So: Federko, Hull, MacInnis, Sutter.
Fair assessment.
I wanted to give Blues fans a chance to share who, or what, defines the Blues to them. Some answers were exactly what I hoped for:
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime if you answer anything besides Plagers or Brian Sutter you are stupid.
— Answer Man (@GTAnswerManNoCo) August 15, 2015
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime I had this as a hockey card binder pic.twitter.com/l9rJSAAY86
— Aaron Hall (@Aaron2298) August 15, 2015
@hildymac my answer would be speed (what). They've got tremendous wheels which turns into spectacular plays to the other end quickly.
— Drew ⚾ (@Astone_112) August 15, 2015
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime The Songs 'St. Louis Blues' and '...Saints Go...' as sung by Charles Glenn. Better radio than TV call and Vova.
— Reggie Dunlop (@RegD7) August 15, 2015
But for the most part...
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime Eternal hope, annual disappointment.
— Colten Ebmeier (@RideTheColtrain) August 15, 2015
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime staring into the endless abyss, devoid of any feeling at all
— 3 weeks sober robby (@Rememberingthe5) August 15, 2015
@hildymac Picture this: someone watching the '02 SCF on TV & a graphic appears listing all the DET players who had captained an NHL team 1/2
— Jason McAdams (@JMill1120) August 15, 2015
@hildymac ...and the person reads "BRETT HULL - ST. LOUIS BLUES," and thinks to themselves "...oh that's right, isn't it?"
— Jason McAdams (@JMill1120) August 15, 2015
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime like a first love...so much joy but ultimately heartbreaking
— Brian (@Le_Noceur) August 15, 2015
@grantsales @hildymac I'm not dying from it, I'm living with it.
— Jason McAdams (@JMill1120) August 15, 2015
One of my personal favorite replies...
@hildymac @StLouisGameTime pic.twitter.com/oaStThv1GB
— Buddy van Doodle (@macwilkie) August 15, 2015
And the most succinct yet perfect one of all:
@hildymac Charlie Brown. @StLouisGameTime
— Mike (@HawksBearsCubs) August 15, 2015
So, what does this mean? Obviously Twitter, and Game Time's followers (and my own), are a very small slice of the Blues fanbase. Responses are going to be skewed thanks to a small sample size. Regardless, these are not positive responses over the summer doldrums, the time where it's most key to get people interested in the prospect of an upcoming season and all of the promise.
Roughly, fans seem to be done with the promise. Blues fans are a cynical lot over the offseason most years, and we're not much better during the regular season, but this year it looks like the team and the front office really have their work cut out for them in getting people pumped up about another year of potentially missed potential.