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Blues should go fishing St. Louis needs a Messier-type (or a Messier, himself)
Posted: Monday May 01, 2000 10:57 PM
Just about everyone is looking for the St. Louis Blues to take a run at potential free-agent Mark Messier this summer. The theory is that the Blues' stunning first-round loss to the San Jose Sharks was due to a lack of pressure tested leadership. Bunk! The Blues lost because goalie Roman Turek had a pretty good case of the shakes in his first real must-win playoff situation. That and because the defense wasn't big enough, strong enough or deep enough to keep the Sharks out of the St. Louis zone. Insiders in St. Louis knew there was reason to fear the Shark attack. Defenseman Chris Pronger and Al MacInnis may well have been overworked even before the series began. MacInnis is not a strong down-low defenseman to begin with, and at age 37 he certainly can't be counted on to play that kind of game every other night. Pronger had a terrible defensive series. He logged way too much ice time in the regular season and spent too much of the series biting on the Sharks' repeated attempts to bait him. A physical forward, someone considerably younger than Messier, would also be on the St. Louis wish list. The Blues have a lot of good, skilled, playmaking forwards, but they had no answer for San Jose' Owen Nolan who dominated the down-low portion of the ice and delivered all kinds of punishing hits on the Blues. Money used to be an issue whenever the Blues were in this situation in the past, but with new ownership and a committed fan base, that likely won't be the case now. Already there is talk that the Blues and the Edmonton Oilers are talking deal. St. Louis might also have an interest in Phoenix's Keith Tkachuk, who is almost certain to be traded this summer. The Coyotes have been sold, but the deal is a marginal one at best and still hinges on whether or not that new building ever goes up. The new owner already is claiming losses of $10 million per season and is saddled with a team that hasn't gotten out of the first round for a record nine consecutive seasons. There's some talk that Tkachuk could stay in Phoenix if he were to restructure his contract, but that's not likely. It's no secret that management tried to trade him to Carolina, the New York Rangers and the Flyers this season. As of now, you might as well add St. Louis to the list. If the Blues want to win it all, they're going to have to do it soon. Jim Kelley covers the NHL -- and the Sabres -- for the Buffalo News. His notebook and Rumor Mill appear weekly on CNNSI.com. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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