St Louis Blues Playoff Woes Continue

I recently finished an article for Ice Nation UK, St. Louis Blues Cursed with Playoff Fizzle. The 2013-2014 season started with expectations high. The fans were certain that this was the year that the Stanley Cup would grace St. Louis. The players felt the anticipation and they rose to meet the challenge. It did look like they would truly go all the way to the Stanley Cup finals.

Then the Olympic break happened. The Blues had ten players slated to make the long trek to Sochi, Russia. Nine of the ten were actually able to make the journey. Forward Vladimir Sobotka was unable to play due to a knee injury.

After the players returned from the break they looked slow and tired. Distractions started weighing the team down and a breakdown in leadership was evident. Then Blues management made a monumental mistake. They completed the dreaded trade for Ryan Miller. While I’m sure this trade looked great on paper, the reality of bringing in Miller, who has choked in high-pressure situations before, was a blunder they could not afford to make.  Miller started strong but then quickly fizzled. The Blues pre-Miller trade had the composition and the endurance to go all the way. The Blues post-Miller trade looked frazzled and uncertain. They still won games, but they were winning them in overtime or shootouts. The Blues went from being a well put together team, a cohesive unit into a team scrambling for the slightest edge over their opponents. 

Injuries at the end of the season played a large role in shaking the confidence of the organization. The Blues had to rely on untried players to create offense while the defense scrambled to keep pucks away from a drowning Miller. The combination was not conducive to winning hockey games! The Blues simply imploded and ended up losing their bid for the President’s Trophy. They then had to

face their dreaded division rival, the Chicago Blackhawks.

I’m not going to re-hash the disappointing series and the disgraceful exit of the Blues in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Everyone already knows that story and feels the pain of the Blues’ playoff curse. While fans are sounding off loudly that the Blues are a horrible team and that they suck, let me offer a bit of level-headedness here. The Blues were strong contenders until general manager went out and destroyed the cohesiveness that head coach Ken Hitchcock worked so diligently to build at the start of the season. Bringing in a goaltender that was extremely vocal about his unhappiness in any situation he has faced whether it is a disappointing showing at the Olympics, not enough ice time at the All-Star Game or simply a bad game with his team was not the smartest move that could be made. Jaroslav Halak and Chris Stewart were able to fire their team up without breaking down or playing the blame game. Both offered a steady presence in the locker room and their teammates respected them. 

Hitchcock’s goal for training camp and the next season will be to rebuild that bond that he worked so hard to cultivate this past season. Hopefully Miller will not be resigned and the Blues can wash the bad taste that was left behind when that trade took place.