Blues hire Steve Ott as assistant coach, begin off-season with a bang

When I suggested that the Blues need to take some forward steps to compete in the Central Division next season, this was not the step I expected them to take. To accompany the hire of former Blue Darryl Sydor as an assistant coach, the Blues signed a three year (!) contract with Steve Ott for his services.

Ott, you may remember, irritated the hell out of Mike Yeo’s Minnesota Wild en-route to a first round elimination in 2015. He also got called a rodeo clown by local press.

During his career, Ott was often praised as the kind of player that you want on your team, but you hate playing against. A character guy in the locker room, Ott contributed three goals and 14 assists in three years with the Blues while getting paid a ton of money for a fourth line center/sandpaper guy.

While bringing grit behind the bench, Ott also brings a familiarity to the team. He played with many of these players, which could be an advantage when it comes to communicating strategy (though that doesn’t appear to be something Mike Yeo has a problem with). It hasn’t been stated what Ott’s responsibilities will be, but as a brand new coach, this is an interesting hire for the Blues to say the least.