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By any standards, the 2001-2002 Blues must be classified an expensive disappointment. Not an expensive disaster like, say, the New York Rangers. But a disappointment nonetheless.
Any franchise with assets such as Chris Pronger, Al MacInnis, Keith Tkachuk, Doug Weight and Pavol Demitra expects to be participating in Stanley Cup finals. So far, though, no go. The Blues have been hinting at greatness for a few regular seasons now but are found wanting when the time arrives to verify that greatness.
St. Louis ownership, discovering to its dismay that $57.7 million in payroll doesn't necessarily guarantee happiness (or a Stanley Cup), stood pat on the free-agent market during the summer. The reasoning is that what is here now should be enough to get the job done. The pricetag would certainly lead them to believe as much.
When is Prongs coming back? Most optimistic opinion? Late December. Most realistic guess? Early to mid-January. Reconstructive wrist surgeries and a knee injury suffered running into Detroit captain Steve Yzerman during the Blues' playoff ouster means captain and linchpin Chris Pronger will be sidelined for almost half the season. Pronger's prodigious ice time, nudging 30 minutes a game, has to be divvied up somewhere. Outside of MacInnis, the blueline is stocked with Khavanovs and Pilons and Finleys and Laflammes. Rookie Barret Jackman, a bruising sort, is expected to crack the top six and help ease the load.
Who's going to give the top dogs some support? The headache of lacking a second scoring should really be the reserved for the low-budget, no-chance riff-raff ... the Calgarys and Nashvilles of the world. Not an apparent Cup contender such as da Bloos. Yet the Keith Tkachuk-Pavol Demitra-Scott Mellanby unit wound up shouldering far too heavy a burden for the St. Louis last season. Center Doug Weight, brought in at considerable expense from Edmonton, struggled through an injury-plagued season due to an abdominal injury, but he's back, reportedly stronger than ever and should be the catalyst to rectify the problem. Highly-rated Czech rookie Petr Cajanek could be moved from center to the wing to help him.
Have the Blues left it too late? Any true contender has only a certain window in which to lay claim to the Cup, and this bunch is pushing the timetable to the limit. Player-friendly coach Joel Quenneville's message may be wearing thin and the impatience of ownership and fans is growing.
Preseason schedule
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DATE
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OPPONENT
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TIME (ET)
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Thu., Sept. 19
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vs. Boston at Worcester, Mass. (Centrum Centre)
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7 p.m.
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Sat., Sept. 21
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at Nashville
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8 p.m.
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Wed., Sept. 25
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Nashville
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8 p.m.
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Fri., Sept. 27
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at Chicago
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8:30 p.m.
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Sat., Sept. 28
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Minnesota
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8 p.m.
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Tue., Oct. 1
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at Detroit
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7:30 p.m.
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Fri., Oct. 4
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Chicago
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8 p.m.
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Sat., Oct. 5
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at Dallas
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8 p.m.
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