Join Blues beat writer Jim Thomas for his live chat at 1 p.m. Wednesday
Get your questions ready and join in at 1 p.m. Wednesday for our weekly Blues chat.
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No, I can't see Tucker staying up once Perunovich, Scandella and Krug comes back. But I don't think we have to even start thinking about that until after the All-Star break/Blues bye week. Perunovich has been cleared for light contact - Berube told me today - so it looks like he's closest to a return. But even he's still weeks away, I'd say.But yeah, Tucker has made a big impression, including on Berube. I know it's a small sample size, but he does a lot of things Berube likes in a D-man. Plays physical, direct game, keeps it simple.
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Bo Hovert, Patrick Kaine, Dylan Larkin are all UFAs playing on non-playoff teams and will be more sought after by the few contending teams that can afford them. I don’t think you’ll find more than 2 teams willing to give up a first round pick. At best, tank and ROR will only return a second round pick. How do you see it?
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Jim, thank you for doing the Blues chat.
Yes, the Blues won Monday night but in an unconvincing manner, it should have been a 5-1 winner. The Lightning showed how far the Blues have dropped from being a cup contender. So when I read the tea leaves I see Army trading O'Reilly, Tarasenko and others for drafts picks and young talent. In your opinion am I reading the leaves correctly? Will we start seeing movement prior to the beginning of March? -
Sorry, I posted two questions at once. I'll answer the question on O'Reilly and Tarasenko first. Lots of teams are tight against the cap, so we may not see much movement this year. If I'm Armstrong, I'm still asking for a first-round pick and a prospect. But you're right - a lot of the contending teams may not have the room to fit them, or other high-end players under the cap. And correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think Armstrong has ever retained salary in making a trade.
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And now, to Barry's question. The Blues have shown when playing contending teams that they can't afford to make mistakes. Mistakes hurt them against both Calgary and Tampa Bay in those loses. After a promising start without O'Reilly and Tarasenko, I'm wondering if the Blues can sustain enough offense over the long haul without them - they've scored only 5 goals in the last three games.I think O'Reilly, Tarasenko, Krug, Scandella, Mikkola,, Barbashev could all potentially be on trading block. this year. The injuries to O'Reilly, Tarasenko, Krug, Scandella makes a trade more complicated, although some of those guys will be back before the trade deadline.I don't think much will happen before the deadline this year - but that's pretty much the case every year.
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Seems like much focus on trading #'s 90 and 91. I think you've pretty much already addressed this, but I'm going to post this question anyway. I've seen multiple media reports proposing #90 going to Toronto. How does that happen with Toronto having less than $2M available under the Cap? 2nd question...why do sports writers ignore the Cap when posting articles like that? (Not talking about the P-D.)
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Just curious, do you guys listen to radio/tv broadcasters during games? It seems like they have access to stats that maybe you beat writers don't have (because of their production crews talking in their ears, or whatever). That could be a good source of info for your articles and such. Just curious how that worked.
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Some writers listen to the broadcast. I almost always don't. It's just too distracting to me. Occasionally, they will be stationed in a press box just above me on the road and I can hear the broadcast. (Especially when it comes to my friend Chris Kerber - he doesn't have an indoor voice!)I think both the TV side and the radio side have access to a full-time statistician - which obviously we don't in the newspaper game. But I keep a stat book of my own and am able to come up with some good stuff on my own - or so I think. And the game notes published by the Blues PR staff always includes some good nuggets, some of which I use as do the radio and TV broadcast crews.
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Do goaltenders’ career records against teams really matter much? Teams change and are sometimes less competitive (i.e. the Blackhawks), and goaltenders change teams. For example, how much stock do the Blues place on Greiss’s career record against teams, such as Minnesota, since this is his first year with the Blues, and he hasn’t even played for a team in the Western Conference since 2014-2015?
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Good point. I always try to tweet them anyway. But a lot of times the teams aren't that different from year to year. And when it comes to a road rink, there can be a familiarity or comfort level with the arenas. (How springy are the boards, ice quality, etc.) Sometimes it can be more of an intangible - just a feeling of confidence when playing that team. So in most cases, I think it has some value. And I think occasionally it factors into Berube's decision on who to play on a given night.
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JT,
Thanks for your and chatters help last week re: Blues radio access. I seem to recall that you visited and wrote about Glenn Hall after the Stanley Cup in 2019. Have you been able to speak with the old Conn Smythe winner about his induction to the inaugural Blues Hall of Fame? -
I was up in Calahoo, Alberta for Berube's Cup Day in the summer of 2019. And Glenn Hall stopped by for the festivities - he lives nearby. But it was an outdoor event, and I was in a different area and missed him!I haven't been able to speak with him about his induction. Don't know what I'd get out of a phone interview - he doesn't know me. But it's an interesting thought.
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I was disappointed in the Blues HOF induction ceremony. I was especially looking forward to Glenn Hall, and disappointed when he was not there, but I would have thought in this day and age there could have been a video feed for the members not able to attend. I understand it's the first one and things will be tweaked.
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Just an FYI - my understanding is that there is no ill will between Brian Sutter and the Blues. Sutter simply devotes most of his time running a huge ranch in the Calgary area. He's keeping busy.
www.theglobeandmail.com -
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No question today since you answered mine in person… I just wanted to tell everyone that if they haven’t come out to Centene for a practice, they should. It’s a lot of fun to see all the different drills they go through… and if you’re lucky you can chat with your favorite hockey writers. Thanks for taking the time to talk today.
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I have been stuck on 45 states visited for two or three decades now. Haven't been to Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont.In 1985-86, my first year on the Mizzou beat, the basketball team played in the Great Alaskan Shootout but didn't send me. (They did later play a couple of times in Hawaii - and I got to go to those, so I came out OK on that deal.)I was supposed to travel up to Eugene, Oregon and do a story on Rich "Big Daddy" Brooks before the first St. Louis Rams training camp in 1995, but ran out of time before camp started.Mike Martz used to have a place in Idaho, and has invited me up there but never made it. And now he's sold the place and is living in St. Louis.My son and his ex-wife were heading up to Maine several years back and invited me to go along, but I wanted to get back to St. Louis and my wife.So I've had a few chances. . . ..
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Also regarding the HOF night ... what's up with Brian Sutter? Can you shed some light on why he did not attend? If there is "a history" involved, I hope he realizes that his absence reflects more on him than it does on those in the organization, few of whom were around when he played or coached.
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With the Blues 2,000th win Monday night are you surprised the franchise ranks 7th in wins behind the original six and the Broad Street Bullies (Flyers)? I assume playoff wins are included, many years the Blues made the playoffs with an average team and no chance at the silverware.
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I was a little surprised. And I think the totals are for regular-season wins only. The Blues had some lean years, but I think they've missed the playoffs only like nine times in 55 seasons. So they've had pretty consistent success over the years even though they've won only 1 Cup.
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No admission fee. On games days, they're almost always at Enterprise Center and those are not really open to the public. But on almost all non-game days - if the team is practicing, they're at Centene. Practices usually start at 11 a.m. Sometimes 11:30 a.m. When in doubt, arrive early because a lot of times the practices only go for about a half hour. Dress warmly. There are three indoor rinks at Centene, but the one they use most often for practice is as cold as any arena in the league.
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Regarding the Blues HOF ceremony, isn't it hilarious the contempt those players (Hull, MacInnis, Pronger) still have against Mike Keenan and the then-owner of the Blues? Also, don't you love how Chris Kerber is able to moderate those types of events? His comment about "it was only a matter of time before that subject came up" was hilarious. Glad you were able to attend that event. Oh... I do have another question...what is the physical location of the Blues HOF?
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Kerber and John Kelly do a great job - a great job - at Blues-related events. Yeah, it was amusing that after all those years Keenan in particular still elicits such strong responses. For now, I don't think there is a physical location for the Hall. But I will try to look into that.
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