Blues will not re-sign Jax

[gaijin]

The end of the Jackman area.

I'll always remember him in those games against the Sharks driving Owen Nolan crazy.

Well that answers the question of how the Jackman area will be remembered.

I'll always remember the way he would plow other teams' forwards to the ice after they score on us.

[ecbm]

The end of the Jackman area.

I'll always remember him in those games against the Sharks driving Owen Nolan crazy.

Well that answers the question of how the Jackman area will be remembered.

Can't lie, eternal image of him in my mind is him slamming into Halak. A real "yep, I'm watching the Blues in the playoffs" moment.

Hard not to miss the guy in a way but he would have had to play for virtually nothing next season to be worth it. It's not just Lindbohm and Bortuzzo but Edmundson, Hakanpaa and possibly Parayko also looking to get ice time. Good luck to him. He'll probably win the Cup with Columbus or something.

I would assume Backes is.

That is correct.

Was Brian Sutter really the last player to spend his entire NHL career with the Blues? Dag. Guess we'll probably never see that again.

[cardsfan04]

I would have liked for him to have finished his career here. Always liked him. But, this was an obvious change to make. He's getting older and slower. We're deep at defense. And, we have cap issues. Him coming back was a longshot.

[Oaklandblue]

First Stastny is told in a very public fashion that he needs to tow his weight.

Now, Jax is told upfront that we're going in a different direction and won't be utilizing his services.

I don't want to be doing cartwheels, but I am starting to believe in Stillman. Army has...has...has...to make one big addition and shore up the bottom of the team to make this all work.

As for goalies, anyone who even considers we should trade Bings for whatever is absolutely delusional, especially if it's for Cam Talbot. There isn't enough numbers on Cam to say how good he'll be in the long run. If we're going to ship out resources and Ells and/or Allen to get a netminder, get us someone like Schneider or Anderson or don't even bother.

Ribs is avaliable, I'd go after him. Guranteed point getter whose got his head on right and would be a 2-3m acquisition if he doesn't re-sign with the Preds.

Kessel I'd do only if it was a cap dump situation - 8m sounds ridiculous, but we're going to pay Tank as much pretty quick anyway, so if we traded off something like Backes + Steen/Oshie/Bergy or some combination, it can work out and we wind up with a line with: Kessel, Tank, Steen or Schwartz, Kessel, Lehtera....holy man.

I would SO TRADE for the #3 Yote Pick and get Hannifin, Big strong reliable >>>CENTRE<<< who can walk right into this lineup and I would definetly overpay for it, like Backes + Oshie + Whatever. Clears capspace and makes room for Fabs, etc.

And I might be in the minority, but I'd keep Joker. Guys got gas left in his tank and you can see the hustle out of him.

[Oaklandblue]

I would have liked for him to have finished his career here. Always liked him. But, this was an obvious change to make. He's getting older and slower. We're deep at defense. And, we have cap issues. Him coming back was a longshot.

I haven't looked at stats, but I feel quite the opposite about our D. It's been spotty, unreliable and prone to boneheaded mistakes. When they're on, they're dynamite, but when they're off, like they've been in some long patches, forget it.

[cardsfan04]

I would have liked for him to have finished his career here. Always liked him. But, this was an obvious change to make. He's getting older and slower. We're deep at defense. And, we have cap issues. Him coming back was a longshot.

I haven't looked at stats, but I feel quite the opposite about our D. It's been spotty, unreliable and prone to boneheaded mistakes. When they're on, they're dynamite, but when they're off, like they've been in some long patches, forget it.

Not saying they are perfect, but I think we have one of the better D corps in the league. More than that though I was speaking to body count. Shatty/Pietro/Bouwmeester/Lindbohm/Bortuzzo/Gunnarson.

Re-signing Jackman would push one of them to the press box every night. They weren't going to give him anything substantial at all given our roster and cap issues.

[Oaklandblue]

I would have liked for him to have finished his career here. Always liked him. But, this was an obvious change to make. He's getting older and slower. We're deep at defense. And, we have cap issues. Him coming back was a longshot.

I haven't looked at stats, but I feel quite the opposite about our D. It's been spotty, unreliable and prone to boneheaded mistakes. When they're on, they're dynamite, but when they're off, like they've been in some long patches, forget it.

Not saying they are perfect, but I think we have one of the better D corps in the league. More than that though I was speaking to body count. Shatty/Pietro/Bouwmeester/Lindbohm/Bortuzzo/Gunnarson.

Re-signing Jackman would push one of them to the press box every night. They weren't going to give him anything substantial at all given our roster and cap issues.

I agree, we do. I'm hoping Boomer gets back to where he was before and Pie stays consistent, he was a beast in the playoffs. Gunnar either needs to go or get paired with Shatt, they seem to click really damn well. I really want to see what Borts and Lindbohm got in a full season with us. I feel Borts is the real deal.

[theohall]

I agree, we do. I'm hoping Boomer gets back to where he was before and Pie stays consistent, he was a beast in the playoffs. Gunnar either needs to go or get paired with Shatt, they seem to click really damn well. I really want to see what Borts and Lindbohm got in a full season with us. I feel Borts is the real deal.

D-pairings if Bouwmeester isn't dealt should be...

Pietrangelo/Lindbohm
Shattenkirk/Gunnarson
Bortuzzo/Bouwmeester

Middle pairing doesn't have the physical presence, but later in the season Gunnarson was playing very well in terms of defensive zone play. It puts tough, d-first guy plus a puck-moving guy on every D pairing and has the advantage of switching up which side is strong on moving the puck/strong on D shift to shift to screw with opponents. This assumes Bouwmeester gets to be an offensive d-man again has he was his whole career until the past two seasons. And everyone is on their correct side based on leftie vs rightie.

[goon attack]

Bouwmeester f***ing sucks. He should be jettisoned immediately.

[ecbm]

I would have liked for him to have finished his career here. Always liked him. But, this was an obvious change to make. He's getting older and slower. We're deep at defense. And, we have cap issues. Him coming back was a longshot.

I haven't looked at stats, but I feel quite the opposite about our D. It's been spotty, unreliable and prone to boneheaded mistakes. When they're on, they're dynamite, but when they're off, like they've been in some long patches, forget it.

It fails to translate to the playoffs like all of this squad's good qualities but in terms of outcomes-goals and shots on goal allowed-the Blues defense is nothing short of elite. It lacks physicality and Bouwmeester is declining but it's not the problem area of the team, same as goaltending. The problem: 54 goals in 27 playoff games in Hitch's tenure. Exactly 2 goals a game. Ugh. THAT needs addressing.

[glen a richter]

First Stastny is told in a very public fashion that he needs to tow his weight.

Now, Jax is told upfront that we're going in a different direction and won't be utilizing his services.

I don't want to be doing cartwheels, but I am starting to believe in Stillman. Army has...has...has...to make one big addition and shore up the bottom of the team to make this all work.

As for goalies, anyone who even considers we should trade Bings for whatever is absolutely delusional, especially if it's for Cam Talbot. There isn't enough numbers on Cam to say how good he'll be in the long run. If we're going to ship out resources and Ells and/or Allen to get a netminder, get us someone like Schneider or Anderson or don't even bother.

Ribs is avaliable, I'd go after him. Guranteed point getter whose got his head on right and would be a 2-3m acquisition if he doesn't re-sign with the Preds.

Kessel I'd do only if it was a cap dump situation - 8m sounds ridiculous, but we're going to pay Tank as much pretty quick anyway, so if we traded off something like Backes + Steen/Oshie/Bergy or some combination, it can work out and we wind up with a line with: Kessel, Tank, Steen or Schwartz, Kessel, Lehtera....holy man.

I would SO TRADE for the #3 Yote Pick and get Hannifin, Big strong reliable >>>CENTRE<<< who can walk right into this lineup and I would definetly overpay for it, like Backes + Oshie + Whatever. Clears capspace and makes room for Fabs, etc.

And I might be in the minority, but I'd keep Joker. Guys got gas left in his tank and you can see the hustle out of him.

There's no way I'd trade Binnington at this point. Allen, maybe. Depends on the return. As far as Hanifin goes though, dude is a d-man, not a center. You mean Strome, right?

[glen a richter]

First Stastny is told in a very public fashion that he needs to tow his weight.

Now, Jax is told upfront that we're going in a different direction and won't be utilizing his services.

I don't want to be doing cartwheels, but I am starting to believe in Stillman. Army has...has...has...to make one big addition and shore up the bottom of the team to make this all work.

As for goalies, anyone who even considers we should trade Bings for whatever is absolutely delusional, especially if it's for Cam Talbot. There isn't enough numbers on Cam to say how good he'll be in the long run. If we're going to ship out resources and Ells and/or Allen to get a netminder, get us someone like Schneider or Anderson or don't even bother.

Ribs is avaliable, I'd go after him. Guranteed point getter whose got his head on right and would be a 2-3m acquisition if he doesn't re-sign with the Preds.

Kessel I'd do only if it was a cap dump situation - 8m sounds ridiculous, but we're going to pay Tank as much pretty quick anyway, so if we traded off something like Backes + Steen/Oshie/Bergy or some combination, it can work out and we wind up with a line with: Kessel, Tank, Steen or Schwartz, Kessel, Lehtera....holy man.

I would SO TRADE for the #3 Yote Pick and get Hannifin, Big strong reliable >>>CENTRE<<< who can walk right into this lineup and I would definetly overpay for it, like Backes + Oshie + Whatever. Clears capspace and makes room for Fabs, etc.

And I might be in the minority, but I'd keep Joker. Guys got gas left in his tank and you can see the hustle out of him.

There's no way I'd trade Binnington at this point. Allen, maybe. Depends on the return. As far as Hanifin goes though, dude is a d-man, not a center. You mean Strome, right?

[WaukeeBlues]

I soured on Jackman VERY quickly the last two seasons. He seriously lagged behind the rest of the league in speed (or lack thereof) and just turned into a hack. Whacking at guys for no reason, taking stupid ass penalties over and over. Then when he gets called he looks up at the ref with this "HUH!? ME!?" look on his face like he's seriously shocked he just got called for ramming a guys face into the goal post after the whistle. That's not being tough that's being a moron. His longevity in the 'Note is something to be complimented and admired but I'm so sick of him I can't even express it.

So many teams in this league are looking for cheap depth defensemen that know what they're doing. He'll land somewhere this July 1 and get paid a decent amount (all things considered) to do it. Good luck to him but I'm glad he's not going to be on this team next fall. Very glad.

[Oaklandblue]

You mean Strome, right?

Yes. Thank you for the save, Glen.