Blue Note Weekly Report: Blues' Playoff Hopes Alive, but Not Stable

Plus, a hot streak for Jordan Kyrou, the remaining schedule & more

Welcome to the latest Blue Note Weekly Report…

The St. Louis Blues are still in the playoff mix as the 2023-24 regular season nears its close. The NHL playoff race is in full force with just a few weeks remaining in the season.

This week’s edition will delve into the status of the Blues and the playoff race, how Jordan Kyrou took his game to a different level against the Ottawa Senators and Minnesota Wild, a few personnel adjustments from head coach Drew Bannister, and more.

Blues’ Playoff Hopes Alive, but Not Stable

The club is still in playoff contention, but it’s still going to be an uphill climb to overtake those above them. After losing in overtime to the Vegas Golden Knights, they are five points behind them and even further behind the Nashville Predators in the wild card race. After firing head coach Craig Berube and naming Bannister the interim, the club is lucky to be near this position and it might not be best for their future either as they try to rebuild/retool the roster.

Of course, there is a decent argument in favor of the Blues trying to make the playoffs. The number of poor contracts on the payroll and untradeable players put them in between rebuilding and retooling. It’s all the doing of general manager Doug Armstrong, who has struggled to keep things afloat since winning the Stanley Cup in 2019.

In the end, I don’t think they’ll make the playoffs and this summer looms as another important offseason for Armstrong. He’ll need to find a new head coach and try to cut some of the dead weight from the roster. He also has a bunch of draft picks to continue to strengthen the prospect pool.

Kyrou Takes It Up a Notch in Back-to-Back Performances

Kyrou’s production has been in question for a lot of this season, and rightfully so. However, in a two-game stretch on the road in Ottawa and Minnesota, he took his game up a notch. After scoring 37 goals last season, his goal-scoring has slowed down this season, but he’s reached 20 goals for the third consecutive season. There are always levels of frustration with him at times, but