For the last 19 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.

The 20th annual review will appear here on DobberHockey throughout the summer/fall. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey both for the season ahead as well as the foreseeable future. Offensively, will the team perform? Are there plenty of depth options worthy of owning in keeper leagues? What about over the next two or three years? These questions are what I take into consideration when looking at the depth chart and the player potential on that depth chart.

Enjoy!

* * Pick up the DobberHockey Fantasy Guide here – always updated * *

Gone – Mackenzie MacEachern, David Perron, Charlie Lindgren, Dakota Joshua, Ville Husso

Incoming – Martin Frk, Josh Leivo, Matthew Highmore, Anthony Angello, Thomas Greiss, Noel Acciari

Impact Of Changes – The biggest name that the Blues will miss next season is David Perron after his third stint in St. Louis where he averaged 30.7 goals over 82 games his past four seasons there. It is unlikely that anyone they've added to the roster can make up those goals so from that standpoint the team will need to look from within the existing roster for more goals. His departure should benefit Jordan Kyrou and Pavel Buchnevich with the man advantage, but it might hurt Kyrou at even strength who struggled when Perron was out of the lineup last season.

In goal, the team has replaced Ville Husso and Charlie Lindgren with Thomas Greiss, which signals that Jordan Binnington is the clear number one and should see 50-55 starts next year.

The Blues have replaced energy players, Mackenzie MacEachern and Dakota Joshua with Matthew Highmore and Noel Acciari, which on the surface gives up a little physicality (hits) and relies on Acciari to be healthier than he has been for the past two seasons.

Ready For Full Time – Scott Perunovich will need to earn a spot or be an injury replacement as he only dressed in 19 games last season with six assists and averaged 15:27 of ice per night. There are holes in his game and as long as Torey Krug is healthy and on the roster, there is a significant roadblock for Perunovich to get coveted offensive opportunities in the short term. It was not a good sign for Perunovich that the team extended Nick Leddy for four more years.

Jake Neighbours could be ready for a regular role as well, but he has only played 58 regular season games at any level over the prior two seasons, so it might be prudent to give him time in the AHL and let his play dictate his arrival in the NHL.

Joel Hofer could see some games next season in the NHL, but the club would prefer he gets more playing time in the AHL next season to continue to improve. The opportunity is there if either Greiss or Binnington struggles or goes down with an injury.

📢 advertisement:

Fantasy Outlook – At forward, the Blues are deeper than most teams in their top nine when healthy, particularly down the middle with Ryan O'Reilly, Robert Thomas and Brayden Schenn. They aren't a dynamic forward group, but they still have six of the forwards that were on the Stanley Cup-winning roster from 2018-19.

The line of Thomas, Pavel Buchnevich and Vladimir Tarasenko had great chemistry last season as they out-scored opponents 35-19 at even strength while playing together 34.1 percent of the time. Look for that percentage to increase next season if they're all healthy.

On the surface, it would seem that Kyrou will be the beneficiary of the departure of Perron as Kyrou should see more power play time and should line up with O'Reilly and Saad on the top line. Buchnevich could also benefit from more power play time as well.

Ivan Barbashev had one of the biggest breakout seasons of anyone in the league last year as he went from 12 points in 38 games in 2020-21 to 60 points in 81 games. Unfortunately, he has set his bar and will more than likely only come down to 45-50 points.

On the blue line, St. Louis is led by Krug, Justin Faulk and Colton Parayko. Faulk had an excellent season with 16 goals and 31 assists with only one of his goals on the power play. Parayko matched his best offensive contribution with six goals and 29 assists while Krug had 43 points in 64 games. Krug hasn't played more than 64 games in any of the prior four seasons, and this might explain extending Leddy rather than taking a chance with Perunovich.

Binnington should be the 1A in net, if not the outright starter over Greiss and if healthy he should see 60-70 percent of the starts.

On paper, the Blues have gone backwards a little in goal and losing Perron. Fantasy-wise this roster still has at least eight forwards and three or four defenders that are relevant in most pools. I'm not sure that Kyrou or Barbashev can hope to fill the role left by Perron, as their defensive game isn't close to his. There is potential for a few players to fall off the ledge a little next season and it will be difficult for anyone on the roster to exceed last season.

Fantasy Grade – B (Last year was a B)