Top Shelf: Kariya and the new Blues landscape

The Blues' Paul Kariya has 384 goals and 946 points in 914 NHL games. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Ryan Dixon
2009-09-16 13:31:00

Every time Paul Kariya pulled on the Blue Note, he was, essentially, competing for a bad team.

He signed with the Blues on July 1, 2007 and played every game on the team’s schedule through Nov. 5, 2008, when an injured hip forced him to the sidelines for the remainder of the season.

About two months after that, St. Louis became one of the toughest draws on the NHL slate.

It’s easy to see why optimism abounds in Missouri on the eve of another October puck-drop. Everybody remembers the Blues’ hot finish to last year, but some likely forget their big playoff push came despite a rash of injuries, including the one that forced Kariya into the role of observer.

Now, fresh off a sixth-place finish in the West and their first post-lockout playoff appearance, St. Louis has – with apologies to Brad Boyes and Andy McDonald – its most skilled forward back in the fold.

He scored a goal in the Blues’ first pre-season game Tuesday night as part of a training camp that must be a bit of an eye-opener for Kariya based on the level of talent around him.

Think about it; the last time Kariya played a regular season game with these guys, David Backes was a kid with one goal through 11 games. He ended up with 31 last year and now occupies prime space in any conversation about the U.S. Olympic team.

Chris Mason was playing just his fourth game with St. Louis and had yet to post a ‘W’ when Kariya went out. By season’s end, he had 27 of them and was a driving force behind the squad’s success.

Talk of David Perron and Patrik Berglund was still very much about what they could do, not what they were doing to help entrench St. Louis as a club that could compete with the heavy-hitters in the stacked Central Division.

Heck, T.J. Oshie hadn’t even started his political career yet.

Kariya must feel like a guy who left for a road trip, only to return home and find his modest house had been converted into the Playboy Mansion.

Safe to say a lot has changed in St. Louis, but nothing more significant than the fact they’ve added a top-end point-producer to the mix without moving any bodies or heaping on new salary.

Kariya, who turns 35 on Oct. 16, can be a point-per-game player for the Blues this year. He was on a better pace than that last season, when he put up 15 points in the 11 games he played. Assuming his surgically-repaired hips – he had surgery on them both last year – don’t give him any additional guff, the table is set for Kariya to have his best season since posting 85 points for Nashville in 2005-06.

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The guy can still fly, fire and feed.

St. Louis’ top three trios are stuffed with skill, meaning no matter who he lines up with, Kariya will have quality running mates.

The Blues’ transition game is also going to be aided by another new/familiar face, that of young blueliner Erik Johnson. But even adding the 2006 first overall pick to the group after a year on the sidelines won’t match the significance of dropping Kariya into a situation ready-made for success.

It’s easy to project progress in St. Louis based on last year’s surge. But really, how can you not like this team’s chances of advancement given all the young talent it’s gathering, plus the additions of Kariya and Johnson? No team in the Central – and few in the league for that matter – had an off-season plus/minus ratio like St. Louis.

Detroit said goodbye to Marian Hossa, Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler. Chicago nabbed Hossa, but lost Martin Havlat, while Columbus and Nashville staid the course, banking on improvement from within.

The Blues lost nobody of note, but added a high-end winger and a 6-foot-4, 220-pound defenseman who can skate and move the puck.

How much of a difference can Kariya make? Consider the fact the Blues lost three one-goal games to Vancouver en route to a first round sweep. The other game ended 3-0 for the Canucks after they put an empty-netter on the board.

In other words, St. Louis is right there. And that’s a long way from where they were the last time Kariya was making his sizable contributions.

Ryan Dixon is a writer and copy editor for The Hockey News magazine, the co-author of the book Hockey's Young Guns and a regular contributor to THN.com. His blog will appear regularly in the off-season and his column, Top Shelf, appears Wednesday.

For more great profiles, news and views from the world of hockey, subscribe to The Hockey News magazine.

COMMENTS (10)

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gravyboat Posted
(2009-09-17 18:41:44)

Woywitka plays for Dallas, Cole is still playing for Notre Dame, and Sydor sucks and is still unsigned as of yet. I like the rest of the Blues' defense, but let's stick to facts.

hockeybob1959 Posted
(2009-09-17 18:16:02)

To wearelemmings- what makes you think that the Blues would be leaving St. Louis? I have talked, as a fan, to J.D. and Checkettes enough times to confirm that the hockey team in St. Louis ain't going anywhere for a very long time. To devouringlump- When was Mckee the Blues "best defensive defenseman"? It may have been true when the Blues originally signed him, because of his shot blocking capability, but ever since he suffered the season ending injury 3 seasons ago he hasn't even been close to the player J.D. signed out of Buffalo. As for 'our' defensive capabilities going forward, just having Eric Johnson for this season makes 'us' 100% better than last season. Throw in Barrett Jackman who had his best season since his rookie year last year, Coliaccovo, Woywitka and Polak who emerged big time last season, Weaver, Wagner, Petriangelo, maybe Sydor, Brendan Bell, Tyson Strachan all in competition for the final spots.... Not to mention guys like Ian Cole and Junland who most likely won't make the cut, (I'm keeping Brewer out of the equation for obvious reasons). I predict 'our' defense will account for around 25-30 goals this season (they had 5 or 6 last year) and be a better reason why 'our' power play will be in the top 5-6 all year long. To gravyboat- I agree with all you said except that I have always felt that experience at times is highly overratted. I would rather have a bunch of players who have a ton of potential and are real hungry, (like the Blues) rather than a a bunch of experienced veterans, (unless the veterans are ALL potential HOFers). My prediction right now is that the Blues will finish 4 points out of 1st in the division, no worse that 5th in the Western Conference, and get at least to the 2nd round of the 2010 playoffs.

wearelemmings Posted
(2009-09-17 12:52:54)

I guess it's all moot if St. Louis ends up on the auction block and gets moved. They have to have a breakthrough year this season or the Blues will hit the skids ala Phoenix, Tampa, Florida, Long Island, Nashville, Atlanta, Dallas. If they dont, it could be the Hamilton Blues next year.

jetsilveravenger Posted
(2009-09-17 01:10:03)

Ive always been a big fan of Kariya's. I hope he can have a healthy season and play in the playoffs. He's still a great player.

gravyboat Posted
(2009-09-17 00:09:38)

They were good enough for 6th coming out of dogfight last year. With Kariya, EJ, Conklin, a full year of Colaiacovo, etc. I don't see how the teams who finished around them made better improvements than that. I'm not arguing that it should be close, it very well could be, but there's also good potential that the Blues climb even higher. And criticism of the defense that counters that potential, if it targets anything, should target the crew's inexperience (could be a lot of minutes going to EJ, Polak, Pietrangelo, and Bell), not its ability.

devouringlump Posted
(2009-09-16 22:50:16)

gravyboat - He's boring, is getting older and the contract was ridiculous, no doubt, but he's a solid defender and it's not surprising that he led their defense in +/- and blocked shots and was a significant part of the penalty kill success. You're right about Jackman - he's their best defensive defenseman. I had a brain lapse forgetting about him (how do you forget the top minute d-man? ah well). I do like their forwards with a healthy Kariya and MacDonald. But, EJ or not, I really question whether this unit's good enough to get them above the dogfight in the lower-middle of the west standings.

gravyboat Posted
(2009-09-16 22:21:53)

He was inconsistent on the ice as well. Whether or not that was due to injuries is another issue. The dude has very, very bad hands. He would regularly mishandle the puck or botch an attempt to receive a fine pass, lose the puck in his skates or against the boards, and allow a forechecker to steal the puck and re-establish pressure. All-in-all, he's a solid bottom-pairing shot-blocker with some leadership, but that's it. The Blues' defense cannot be judged negatively by his buyout.

hockey_hippie Posted
(2009-09-16 22:15:22)

McKee's problem has never been what he does when he is on the ice, he is a quality defender, he was in Buffalo, was in St. Louis and will be for Pittsburgh. The problem with McKee was getting him on the ice to begin with. Over the past 6 seasons McKee has played an average of 55 games. When you dress for 67% of the games, it really doesn't matter how good you are, the team you are playing for still has to account for those games you miss. In St.Louis's case that meant playing younger, cheaper players in his place whom they thought could provide enough going forward that they could afford to buy him out. Until McKee can stay healthy consistently, he is always going to be in danger of losing his spot to someone pushed into the rotation during one of his stints on the DL.

gravyboat Posted
(2009-09-16 16:27:23)

McKee was NOT their best defensive defenseman. They didn't buy him out because of salary concerns. Jackman and Polak were both better for the entire season. Brewer is at least as good when healthy, and EJ is better. Heck, you could argue in favor of both Weaver and Colaiacovo over McKee in every area other than shot-blocking and the occasional blind-side hit. The reason they let up so many goals was because Legace was atrocious. Notice that they allowed the 7th fewest shots in the league and had the third best penalty killing unit. When they turned it around and were playing well with Mason in net, their only problem was scoring at even strength, which was due to the fact that Colaiacovo was the only defender who could contribute any transition or offense. Now that they have EJ, Pietrangelo, and Bell in addition to Colaiacovo, as well as Kariya back, transition won't be a problem. Plus, the Blues have above average team defense and one of the best shutdown lines in the NHL.

devouringlump Posted
(2009-09-16 14:44:00)

I wonder if St Louis' defense is good enough. Nobody seems enamored of Jay McKee anymore, but he was their best defensive defenseman. This is a team that gave up as many as they scored and squeaked into the playoffs thanks to an incredible late run. With about 8 teams likely to be in the fight for the last 3 or 4 spots in the west, I would think they're as likely to be on the outside as the inside.