Blues Q&A #6: Who will have the best contract season?

Blues Q&A has wrapped up it’s sixth week. Thanks to all those on Twitter and Facebook for voting. I will keep the question scaled back to one a week till training camp starts. I am also changing the results posting to Monday and will add the next question at the end of the blog.

On to Q&A in a second, but first a couple Blues tidbits.

Tarasenko Confirmation?
Alessandro Seren Rosso of HockeysFuture.com and RussianProspect.com has reported via Twitter that Sibir confirmed that Vladimir Tarasenko will remain in Russia for the 2010-11 season. He goes on to add that there are no reports confirming a potential contract alteration for the Blues first round pick. extension, restructure or otherwise. Allesandro adds that Tarasenko served as Captain of the Russian U20 Team which just finished three friendlies against France.

The Blues are not worried about getting Vladimir over next season. There is always a level of uncertainty with Russian players and KHL contracts. The Blues feel that they have a good enough grasp on the situation with a player who truly wants to be in the NHL. Till his plane lands at Lambert the fan base will worry. They shouldn’t, but they will.

Backes for Kaberle?
No offense to Leaf fans (of which I am a closeted Leaf fan), but it’s a pipe dream that David Backes would leave St. Louis at this point. The Blues have four solid options to fill out their top two pairs and GM Doug Armstrong has already said that the roster is effectively set heading in to camp. With Eric Johnson, Carlo Colaiacovo and now Alex Pietrangelo, the Blues have three puck movers and power play defensemen. Would Kaberle look good in a Bluenote? You bet he would. Just not for the cost of a “Burke” type player. Backes and TJ Oshie are very much in Burke’s mold, but not available for trade.

Brin Heanchan who also writes here at Hockey Independent said it the best I’ve seen. You don’t trade the Blues next potential captain.

On to the Q&A.

Question for the week: Which contract season forward will have the best 2010-11 season? David Backes, TJ Oshie or Patrik Berglund?

Backes – 28%
Oshie – 27%
Berglund – 45%

The voting was actually much closer than I estimated it would be. I was also expecting Backes and Oshie to dominate the voting and instead Berglund comes in as the fan’s choice.

Berglund has every physical tool needed to be a dominating forward. So when he followed up his stellar rookie campaign with a sophomore flop, many wondered what the problem was. It was that lump between his shoulders. For prolonged periods his head just wasn’t in the game throughout the 2009-10 season. No effort and no confidence. At times his play was questioned enough to ask if he should go to the Blues AHL affiliate in Peoria (note he was never sent down). Whether it was Andy Murray or the partying rumors, it all comes back to Patrik’s own ability to make himself the player he has the potential to be.

When he is on his game he controls the offensive zone similar to Evgeni Malkin. A big boy who can use his body to protect the puck, can set up others and has a very good shot. That is why the fans picked him.

David Backes is also coming off a down season. After posing 31 goals in 2008-09, Backes only netted 17 in 2009-10. The perennial slow starter suffered through a rough first few months and came to life after being put on a line with Paul Kariya and TJ Oshie. The three combined to be the Blues top line with Backes as the driving force down the middle. Backes’ value goes beyond scoring goals. His size, strength and leadership capabilities soften the loss of Keith Tkachuk to retirement. His defensive responsibility and penalty kill capabilities are among the best on the team.

If Backes isn’t lighting the lamp he is finding other ways to contribute. However, if he doesn’t reestablish himself as a legitimate goal scoring threat, his earning potential next summer will be much lower.

My vote went to TJ Oshie.

In the second half of 2009-10 Oshie blossomed as an even strength scoring threat. With Backes and Kariya pushing defenders back with size and speed, TJ had room to operate. Leading to 18 goals in 76 games played. Of which only two came on special teams. The manner in which he scored those 15 even strength goals is why he is my pick. They were not solely of one method. Down low banging in rebounds, picking corners and flashy dangle plays in to open space. Oshie was starting show the goal scoring knack. Something that is very hard to quantify, but it’s that feeling that he is always in the right spot to create scoring chances.

Can Oshie hit the 30 goal plateau? I honestly think he can. Combine goal scoring and his stellar two way play and the Blues have a budding star.

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The Q&A for this week will be posted here on Hockey Independent, on Facebook and Twitter.

@MuSigma45 – my personal Twitter
@BlueNoteZone – my Blues Fan Blog on Twitter
Search for “Hockey Independent – Blues” and/or “Bluenote Zone” on Facebook.

Question: Who should start the season with Erik Johnson on the top pairing? Jackman, Brerwer or Colaiacovo?