Yahoo Power Rankings

[California Blues]

The Blues are ranked 11th overall, with the acquisition of Halak receiving praise.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news;_ylt=A ... ower100510

[STLADOGG]

They have the Thrashers last....with the people they added to their roster I wouldn't think too much about this one.

[thedoc]

I would love for this to be true, but I just don't see where the scoring is going to come from. Maybe these guys know more than us, but I wouldn't put to much stock in this list.

[cprice12]

I would love for this to be true, but I just don't see where the scoring is going to come from. Maybe these guys know more than us, but I wouldn't put to much stock in this list.

It's easy to see where the scoring will come from if you feel Perron, Oshie, Backes, Berglund and Boyes will improve on their goal totals from last season and if Steen can duplicate what he did last year...if McDonald can stay healthy...etc.

And, honestly, Perron, Oshie, Backes, Berglund and Boyes SHOULD all put up more goals.

Also, our goaltending SHOULD be better.

This team SHOULD be better than a lot of people here are saying.

[theohall]

Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda.....


Actually, I agree the Blues should produce more points as long as the players they drafted to produce points start doing so...

[DaDitka]

And, honestly, Perron, Oshie, Backes, Berglund and Boyes SHOULD all put up more goals.

And if they each produce 11 more gaols a piece...we'll be right were we need to be.

And you are right, they should produce more, but every year there are guys who also underachieve and there are injuries.

I think this team could finish 7th or 8th, but I simply don't think it's fair to expect that of them.

[cprice12]

Hawks are ranked way too high. Chicago lost an awful lot of players and I don't see Turco having a great year. I might put them around 7th in the NHL...and I think that is generous.

I think San Jose could fall a bit this year. I'm not sold on Niemi at all. His numbers were decent in front of a great defense last year, so we'll see how he does. It says a lot that after winning the cup, he wasn't even guaranteed the starting job in San Jose when the preseason started.

Same thing with Detroit. Howard needs to prove he can do it again. One hit wonders are far too frequent in net to give Howard a free pass and assume he'll be good again. We'll see. Detroit showed last year that they aren't as deep of a hockey team as they were in the past. They had a few injuries last season and really struggled until they got healthy again. If they hadn't gotten healthy down the stretch, they could have very well missed the playoffs.

I think the Blues are about right at 11th. If Halak had a couple more years of stellar play under his belt, I'd say they should be a bit higher...but Halak could still be a one hit wonder just like Niemi and Howard could be. Let's hope Halak is the real deal and Howard isn't. If Halak is a true #1 and the younger Blues (Perron, Backes, Berglund, Oshie, Johnson, Petro) are the real deal, they'll finish higher than 11th overall in the NHL as long as the defense holds up. Nobody scored more goals in the West in the preseason than the Blues. Yeah, it's the preseason...but still. That's a plus, especially considering how the offense struggled last season and how it's supposed to be getting better with the young forwards gaining more experience.

The Coyotes. I think this whole team was a one hit wonder last year. It think the Power Rankings folds have it backwards. Colorado makes the playoffs, Phoenix does not.

[glen a richter]

for whatever it's worth, one of the sportswriters in the NY post picked Atomic Dog to win the Jack Adams, and another one picked the Blues to finish 3rd in the west.

[Gaijin Flyer]

11. St. Louis Blues – File this away: acquiring goalie Jaroslav Halak(notes) will be one of the best offseason moves made by anyone.

I seriously thought it said "offensive" instead of "offseason" moves.

[dmiles2186]

ESPN.com's power rankings today have the Blues at 6th (!), which is in front of Chicago who is in the 10th spot.

http://espn.go.com/nhl/powerrankings

The Blues have struggled to hold leads early in the season but enjoyed a dramatic 1-0 overtime win over Pittsburgh on Saturday and have only one regulation loss (4-1-2). The offense is not quite clicking yet, but the Blues are in the thick of the tough Central Division race.

[DaDitka]

ESPN.com's power rankings today have the Blues at 6th (!), which is in front of Chicago who is in the 10th spot.

http://espn.go.com/nhl/powerrankings

The Blues have struggled to hold leads early in the season but enjoyed a dramatic 1-0 overtime win over Pittsburgh on Saturday and have only one regulation loss (4-1-2). The offense is not quite clicking yet, but the Blues are in the thick of the tough Central Division race.

So basically everything they say is at least partially negative, yet they only rated 5 teams ahead of us.

Usually I'd get worried about the team getting over confident, but I think it's good for the young guys confidence.

[STLADOGG]

http://www.tsn.ca/fantasy_news/rankings/nhl/
Blues Ranked # 2 behind

[JPonder94]

Something that I like to see is that the top 3 teams are Central Division teams. That speaks well for what the Blues are doing IMO.

[Winning Unlimited]

The Blues haven't played Nashville or Detroit yet.

[drwoland]

The Blues haven't played Nashville or Detroit yet.

What? yes they have... Nashville is our only regulation loss, but that was a 4-3 game with Conklin in net..

What the (Frank) is up with the people on this board? They have looked GREAT with the exception of a few lapses. The young guys all look awesome, Oshie already has 7 assists.. WTF do you want?

[fargoblues]

The Blues haven't played Nashville or Detroit yet.

What? yes they have... Nashville is our only regulation loss, but that was a 4-3 game with Conklin in net..

What the (Frank) is up with the people on this board? They have looked GREAT with the exception of a few lapses. The young guys all look awesome, Oshie already has 7 assists.. WTF do you want?

Well, for one, I want a new Happy Pony commercial.

[Nyghtewynd]

HAPPY PONY DEMANDS RETRIBUTION!

[dmiles2186]

The Blues haven't played Nashville or Detroit yet.

What? yes they have... Nashville is our only regulation loss, but that was a 4-3 game with Conklin in net..

What the (Frank) is up with the people on this board? They have looked GREAT with the exception of a few lapses. The young guys all look awesome, Oshie already has 7 assists.. WTF do you want?

Agreed. I was just more surprised that the Blues were getting national attention on ESPN. I mean, 6? Usually ESPN or Yahoo won't put them that high unless the Blues are face raping every team in the league. We can see it, it's clear this team is a different breed from the last few years. Just glad they're getting some exposure.

[philco_3]

If the Blues wouldn't of had those collapses in the 3rd periods against Dallas and Chicago I would be a happier person, but with a 4-1-2 record I'm happy.

[JPonder94]

What? yes they have... Nashville is our only regulation loss, but that was a 4-3 game with Conklin in net..

Just an FYI, Halak was in net that night. But your point is still very valid.