This week came word that highly touted defenseman Alex Pietrangelo had made the Saint Louis Blues’ 23-man roster. While that is most definitely exciting news for the 20-year-old, his family, and the countless Blues fans counting on a bounce-back year following a disappointing 2009-2010 season, a word of warning:
Pietrangelo has been in this situation before... twice in fact. He made the opening-day rosters in each of his first two seasons as well, resulting in eight and nine-game stints with the Blues before ultimately returning to the OHL, where dreams are usually born, but, in Pietrangelo’s case, they just got put on layaway.
Another not necessarily good omen would be fellow defenseman Tyson Strachan making the team this time around as well. Obviously Strachan, a fifth-round draft pick back in 2003, does not have the same pedigree as Pietrangelo, with the latter being drafted fourth overall in 2008, but one interesting stat has him as the only remaining member of the top five that year to not already establish himself as a regular NHLer. Even Toronto Maple Leaf Luke Schenn has played 149 regular-season games (no playoff games, surprise, surprise) to Pietrangelo’s 17.
As such, there’s clearly no guarantee that Pietrangelo has made it as of yet. He still has a lot to prove, most notably whether or not he’s more capable of withstanding a standard bodycheck than Carlo Colaiacovo, who, through some miracle, has played over 60 games in each of the past two seasons.
 |
| "I can fly and everything. What else do they want from me???" |
All things being equal, the team’s defense looks to be its weakest point, with +/- hater and captain Eric Brewer (-17) leading the charge for a corps hoping goalie Jaroslav Halak has a little magic left up his sleeve following his supernatural playoff performance with the Montreal Canadiens. Halak pretty much did it himself for two rounds last spring, but, as the Philadelphia Flyers proved in their five-game victory over the Habs, even the hottest of streaks run cold.
Look no further than the Blues themselves, who were the best team in the league around the all-star break onward two seasons ago, only to get swept in the first round by the Vancouver Canucks. Nowhere was that step backward last season more evident than up front, where most Blues forwards, most notably Brad Boyes, David Backes, and Patrik Berglund saw their point production drop dramatically.
In sharp contrast, Alex Steen, T.J. Oshie, and David Perron either met or exceeded expectations. As a result, expectations are no doubt higher for each of them this time around, and if Pietrangelo comes as advertised, as a highly skilled offensive defenseman, he just may help to make them a reality. More likely, though, he will get his chances to prove his worth and more often than not look out of place as he tries to acclimate himself to life in the NHL.
Pietrangelo is a blue-chip prospect, but the Blues cannot realistically expect him to step into a large role on the team AND make the playoffs. The two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, but it does appear that way from the outside in for a confused team not sure whether to rebuild or contend. Pietrangelo will be alright given time, but the third one isn’t realistically the charm. He’ll stick with the team, just won’t have much success in so doing as the Blues sneak into the post-season.
No comments:
Post a Comment