Beyond Checkerdome

If Blues fans were a little mental after that Coyotes game, this last week was just what the doctor ordered. Our mind was a little more at ease for the All Star break after a 2-0 week against Ottawa and Colorado. Not only did the Blues win, but Steen seems to be heating up. The power play is showing signs of life as well. There was the addition of Jaden Schwartz to the lineup, but also the departure of Magnus Paajarvi via the waiver wire. With only 2 games to cover, we indulge in a little music trivia too.

Well, the Blues came off of their Bye Week and charted another 2-1 week. Big wins against Toronto and Ottawa and then an abysmal showing against Arizona. Blues fans took that loss with the usual grace and aplomb. We welcomed Vince Dunn back into the fold, but we also saw the loss of Mike Shanahan. There's also an important lesson about talking to strangers in the park...

Well, the New Year started off with a lot of promise, but seemed to lose momentum pretty quickly. In the stretch between New Year’s and the Bye Week, the Blues went 2-2-1 against New Jersey, Vegas, Philly, Washington and Florida. We recap those games and also highlight our baby blues in the World Junior tournament. There are some recurring themes among the goals the Blues scored. We were witness to not just one but TWO Butt Goals in this stretch. Unfortunately, they were both goals against. But at least we know who has the tightest ass in the NHL...

Happy New Year! The Blues polished off 2017 with two losses, but got a win at the very end to leave on a high note. We recap the losses to Nashville and Dallas, but at least we have the win against Hurricanes to finish with. We share some frustrations with the power play, and a couple of poor defensive showings. However, big picture, the team is doing better than we thought coming out of Deathcember. Doug Armstrong got a new contract, and we got Jay Bouwmeester back. You might say 2018 is looking better already!

Sorry for the late post, folks! The Blues edged closer to the end of DeathCember with a road trip to the Great White North, resulting in a 1-2-0 week against Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. At least the win came at the end, so we could finish on a high note. We cover those games and float a small theory about neighboring hockey markets. We rave about Tage Thompson a little more, and also Kyle Brodziak. Stick around and you’ll find out why he’s our team’s JK Simmons.

Well, you can't say we didn't warn you - this was going to be a tough month. This week the Blues dropped 2 to the Bolts and Ducks, then split the home-and-home series with the Jets for a 1-3 week. We take a look at those games and try to find what's different about the Blues when they lose. There is some random trivia and the usual tangents. We also take the opportunity to laugh at Ottawa, and celebrate some "Good Missourah Boys" too.

What a difference a week makes. Once we were fretting over an 0-2-1 week, and the next week we are celebrating 4 straight wins over Montreal, Dallas, Detroit, and Buffalo. We cover those games with the usual tangents (of course), and also talk about the beginning of this wave of injuries. How will St Louis remember the Tyler Stewart era? We were amazed at a particular goal against, but also worked up over the Tarasenko goal that closed out the Buffalo game. Maybe we were a little too excited...

Well, I guess we all knew that the streak would end sometime, eh? We will cover the 0-2-1 week against the Ducks, Kings and Wild. We also talk about the impact of returning players like Bouwmeester and Berglund. There's some coaching news and rumors to share, and then there is the Mystery of the Lost Episode...

Who knew Meat Loaf was a Blues fan? For yet another week, we get to celebrate a 2-1 week that started off pretty rough, but got better as the week wore on. We discuss the loss in Calgary and the wins in Edmonton and Vancouver. We talk about a few of our favorite things as well as life lessons from gambling that also apply to hockey. There was a small news item that pertained to the Blues that we cover. Plus, all of the usual tangents you’ve come to expect from us.

Viva La Streak! Another week of winning hockey has passed, with the Blues going 2-1 against New Jersey, Arizona, and Brooklyn. While we celebrate that, we also have a loss off the ice that hit us all pretty hard. Another lesson that we still need to Fight Like Ari. There was also a trade last week that shook up the Central Division, so we cover that as well.

Another week gone by, and once again the Blues are winning at hockey. Sure, the home winning streak ended, but that was inevitable. The Blues still hold a good lead against their Western Conference competitors, and that is the important part. We celebrate the 2-1 week against LA, Philly, and Toronto. There was an interesting non-challenge in that last game that we question. Also, this new surge of defensive scoring might not be a fluke, but rather the New Normal. All that and more!

And the hits just keep coming! This week we try to balance out the happiness of a 3-0 week against the paranoia of when it will all end. The other shoe is gonna drop, right? In the meantime, we celebrate wins against Calgary, Carolina and Columbus. We see an improvement in the special teams, and wonder if that will stick. We also talk about how some folks read too much or the wrong thing into jersey numbers. Sure, there are things that we can worry about in the future, but try to stay in the moment, OK?

Another week of hockey down, and boy was it a doozy! Three games that all had crazy plays, reviewed goals, and the very rare NHL mea-culpa the morning after. We talk about those, and the rules involved in those reviews. We also gush over Vince Dunn and his growth as a player. There is also a loss in the family as Hockey mourns Gord Downie, and yet also celebrate his life. We talk about hats a little, and then the not-so-special special teams. All that, and more!

If you sat us down before the season started and told us that the Blues would start off with a 4-2-0 record, we would have been pretty skeptical. Yet here we are, and though the losses came back-to-back at the end, it still seems pretty good so far. Of course, it is a long season and there is plenty to happen up ahead. We take a look at the first few games of the season, and what has surprised us so far. How about that D? Special teams are looked at, as well as the roster moves brought on by those injuries. Some talk about coaching also. And how about that Ryan Reaves? Miss you, big guy.

This is definitely one for the record books. This episode began on 09/21, and we were set to talk about the Larry Robinson hiring, training camp, and all of those injuries. Then, Real Life came along. We got back together again just before the season opened to talk about the Upshall signing, the finalized roster, and what we’re expecting from this team and this season. There’s some rough audio in the beginning, but that settles down a few minutes in.

It's beginning to feel like Hockey season again - and not a moment too soon! As such, we're back as well. Here, we commemorate the Lokomotiv crash and the late Noel Picard. We also talk about the changes in the national media landscape - and the local effect with Jeremy Rutherford's move to The Athletic. Good on him, and welcome aboard Jim Thomas! Other changes include a new head of Department of Player Safety, as well as a few rules changes for the upcoming year. We have our first signpost of the hockey season - the Traverse City tournament - to talk about too.

It's time to stretch those podcastin' muscles once again. It's been awhile! We get a chance to share what we've done over the past few weeks (spoiler - one is much more fun than the other) and also to discuss what the Blues have been up to. We get a chance to sigh in relief that Colton Parayko was signed, and we cover the smaller moves in free agency. We welcome the San Antonio Rampage to the (future) Blues organization, and we also talk about the departure of one of the unsung heroes of NHL teams.

It’s been a fast-moving off-season. Hell, a lot has happened since we recorded THIS podcast (i.e. the free agent frenzy). Nonetheless, we soldier on and deliver you a recap of just some of the things that happened since the Stanley Cup was awarded. Among our topics for Episode #160: * Our beers. * The Vegas Golden Knights selected their team and pried David Perron away from the Blues in the process. * The trade of Jori Lehtera and two first-round picks to the Flyers for Brayden Schenn as well as the circumstances leading to that trade. * The trade of Ryan Reaves and a second-round pick to the Penguins for Oskar Sundqvist and a first-round pick and how awesome of a trade that was. * The drafting of Robert Thomas, Klim Kostin (!!!), Alexey Toropchenko, David Noel, Trenton Bourque and Anton Andersson into the Blues’ prospect pool. * A small peek ahead into free agency (which hadn’t happened yet as of this recording).

There may not be a whole lot going on in the Blues world, but there IS a lot going on in the hockey world these days. And believe it or not, business is about to pick up. Things we discussed: * Alcoholic beverages, including the ones we were drinking. * The Stanley Cup Final, with a heavy emphasis on the Nashville Predators as well as their fan base and the national media attention both are getting. * The Blues hiring of Darryl Sydor and Steve Ott to be part of the coaching staff and Barret Jackman in a player development role. * The expansion draft . . . we even reveal who we would protect, with some explanations of why. * Some good old-fashioned rosterbation, including who the Blues might target in trades or free agency. We somehow kept all this under two hours!

At long last, we take a look at the season that just was. We find some positives from the 2016-2017 Blues season, and areas that will need some work. We talk about the assistant coaches that were fired, and also who might replace them. We answer an Enabler question, and speculate about what might happen in the offseason. The best news, though, is that there is an addition to the family on the way!