St. Louis Blues Trade Their Soul for Ryan Miller and Steve Ott

It came as no real surprise that the Blues dealt for Ryan Miller. It has been rumored for months now that they were flirting with him and hoped to bring him to St. Louis. In my previous article published on Yahoo Sports, Jaroslav Halak for Ryan Miller: Are the St. Louis Blues Trying to Deal? I laid out the problems with such a trade. It is true that Halak had a lackluster performance during the Olympics for his home country of Slovokia. However, Halak has a rapport with the team and the fans; he has been a shining star in the past and has the potential. Miller is getting older, has a diva personality and has had an attitude with his failing team.

The entire details of the trade have not been released by the Blues but we know who is being kicked to the curb by the Blues. Halak along with Chris Stewart, William Carrier, a first round pick and a third round pick were all dealt to the Buffalo Sabres for a prima donna goalie and a mediocre forward. The Blues are not looking long-term here. They have thrown away a great prospect in Carrier and two fan favorites who could pull a rabbit out of their hats when push came to shove. Essentially, the soul of the team has taken a beating here and it is going to take a little bit of work for them to rebound and become a cohesive unit again.

Stewart has not been shining lately, that much I will give them. But take a long hard look at the rest of the team as well. No one has been giving stellar performances as of late. Maybe it is the hope of management to upset the team and its fans enough to light a fire under them and strive towards becoming the team they were before the Olympics interjected.

I fully understand that it is a business, but I cannot help wondering what exactly they are hoping to achieve with this trade. Will it do more harm than good? The Blues have spent an entire season working and bonding together. Stewart pushed forth and became the big brother to the younger players as well the support of his line. Halak had earned the respect of his teammates through the years that he has played here in St. Louis.

Miller and Ott will join the Blues in Phoenix this Sunday, March 2^nd. It begins a new chapter for the Blues. One that will be interesting to watch play out. How many tantrums will Miller have before the end of the season? Will Ott step up his game and become an asset, not a hindrance.  Will Ken Hitchcock be able to pull the closeness of the team back together and give the players the sense of security they need to play hard for their organization and their city? All of these questions will eventually be answered and I for one will be watching closely to see what disruptions this causes and how they are addressed. It has been a long time since St. Louis has had to deal with a diva goaltender. Are the fans up to the task of worshipping at Miller’s feet? I am admittedly not a fan of Miller or Ott, but I will learn to accept them among the team and will not be overly prejudice against them. I will be waiting with bated breath as the answers to my questions unfold within the next several weeks.

As for Halak and Stewart, it has been a pleasure to watch them grow as players and ambassadors of the sport that they love. We have shared in their triumphs and heartbreaks. As they exit from the Blues, they take with them a piece of St. Louis. I, for one, wish them both nothing but the best and know that with their skills both on and off the ice, they will flourish. They are also embarking on a new chapter in their careers and I cannot wait to watch them in action against the teams in the East.

TJ Oshie After the Olympics

In my article published on Yahoo Voices, I discuss TJ Oshie's fantastic run in Sochi as well as if he is going to be able to continue his momentum throughout the rest of the season. The St. Louis Blues are hunting for the Stanley Cup and Oshie is a key part of their plan. He is about to become a father. Oshie will have to still keep his head in the game through his Olympic fame and the rigors of fatherhood to help his team surge forth towards their ultimate goal.

Read more about it in my article, Can St. Louis Blues' TJ Oshie Rebound After Disappointing Olympics.

I hope you enjoy the article.
~Micki

St. Louis Blues’ David Backes Uses Sochi Stray Dogs as Publicity Stunt

COMMENTARY | St. Louis Blues captain David Backes did not bring home a medal from the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. He did however, bring back two stray dogs. While this would have been a touching story of a big, bad hockey player showing his softer side, to me it seems more like a publicity stunt to promote his new organization, Athletes for Animals. I am an animal lover, I will gladly admit. Dogs are my weak spot and their soulful eyes will get me every time. However, there are millions of strays and shelter dogs here in the United States. 

American shelter dog awaiting a home.

My question to Backes and his wife, Kelly, is why bring back two stray dogs from another country only to place them in a shelter to be adopted out? Are there not enough unwanted and unloved animals crowding our shelters already? The fact that this story has been featured on local news stations in St. Louis, Fox 2 News and KSDK News seemed to cover the story extensively, did nothing to highlight the problem in American shelters or the stray population on U.S. soil which should be a top priority for the ambassador for Athletes for Animals. This story even went national when it was covered by the National Hockey League Player Association among other national websites. Backes proudly stated that these two dogs will be housed for 30 days at Five Acres Animal Shelter in St. Charles, MO and then would be put up for adoption. Really? Two stray dogs were brought through all the red tape and government paperwork in Russia to be placed in a shelter here in the middle of the United States. What about the millions of American stray dogs? Now these dogs will be competing with the animals already in the shelter for a loving family to take them home. 

There are other such stories floating around about Olympic athletes bringing stray dogs out of Sochi, Russia. It may be that those animals are also being placed in shelters and therefore taking up precious space that American strays are in dire need of. If the athletes had been so touched by the situation of stray and mistreated animals in another country, they should have come home to their respective countries and saved a life there instead of adding to the population of shelters and essentially the problems of stray animals in their country. In shelters and animal control facilities around the United States animals are euthanized daily because they are unable to find a home.

In the Jefferson County Missouri Animal Control Shelter every animal housed there is euthanized on Thursday morning. This is true even if the animal is picked up Wednesday evening. Why are our professional athletes, the ones that children idolize, not looking closer to home and realizing that the same problems that they saw while in Sochi, Russia are right in their own back yards. I would have been more impressed with Backes and his wife had they raised awareness about animal control facilities such as the one in Jefferson County and put a plan in action to help the animals there who are not even given a chance at life. They are put in a large, dark trailer and gassed until they die. Where are Athletes for Animals in that situation and so many others just like it across the United States?