One To Watch: St. Louis Blues

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Not unlike the L.A. Kings, St. Louis has been a team that spent much of the last decade planning for the future, one that started to arrive over the last couple of years. The Blues are loaded and have begun to reap the benefits of a proper rebuild.

St. Louis is deep beyond the NHL boasting an array of prospects that most franchises would be envious of. Even after trading away Ben Bishop the Blues are secure with Jake Allen on the farm and Jordan Binnington further down the pipe.

There are some potential gems on the blueline like a personal favourite in Joel Edmundson. Brett Ponich, Jordan Schmaltz, Jani Hakanpaa and the AJHL's Colton Parayko are all worth taking note of.

I expect Jaden Schwartz and Vlad Tarasenko to be in the NHL this year so didn't look at them for this series. I am a believer in both that they can grow into NHL stars one day. 

Ty Rattie is destined for a big year in the WHL and Canada's U20 squad and was almost my pick for this series. The Alberta native is driven and definitely motivated after slipping out of the 1st round in 2011 and getting cut from the 2012 WJC team. I wouldn't bet against him this year. 

The player I went with isn't expected to be star in the NHL but my curiosity is high for him this coming year as he joins a team that has yet to play the first game of its existence.

CHL Not Winning Every Battle

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A lot has been made this summer about the ongoing recruiting war over players between the CHL and NCAA programs. While the number of players backing out of their college commitment in favour of the CHL has actually gone down the last few years, the high profile players doing it in a short span this summer have drawn more attention to the subject.

I think it would be hard to argue that the CHL isn't winning this border skirmish and will continue to do so unless the NCAA alters some rules specifically for NCAA hockey and I am not sure if that is even possible for them to consider. But until then, they'll continue to lose more of the big players than they win.

But that's not to say that college hockey is not without some victories of their own. There are plenty of cases where high caliber players with CHL options are still headed down the college path, or at least haven't eliminated that option.

Gardiner Leaves Gophers for Tri City? [Updated]

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Max Gardiner has left the University of Minnesota after just one season because of a lack of playing time. That according quotes from Gophers head coach Don Lucia in an ESPN story here.

The St. Louis Blues 3rd rounder has 3 options available to him hockey wise: He can turn pro which won't happen. He can play in the USHL after being recently drafted by Dubuque, that story is here. Or he can head to the WHL and suit up for the Tri City Americans who listed him in the fall of 2009.

UPDATE: Guy spoke with Americans GM Bob Tory minutes ago and he offered several comments.