When locker cleanout day arrived Thursday morning, Blues players weren’t sure if they’d played their final game under interim coach Drew Bannister.
“He came in, he held guys accountable and pushed us in a great direction,” Blues forward Jake Neighbours said. “I thought the players did a good job of accepting what was going on and embracing a new coach and a new way of doing things. He did a great job. He was awesome for us, and we enjoyed playing for him.”
Bannister, who was 30-19-5 after taking over for the fired Craig Berube, is a finalist to earn the full-time coaching gig in St. Louis, general manager Doug Armstrong said. Blues players reiterated that the decision was not theirs to make, but they were asked about what it was like to play for Bannister.
“The record since he took over speaks for itself,” Blues forward Robert Thomas said. “I think we did a lot of positive things, and he was obviously a big part of that. It’s not our decision, and we’re not really a part of that process. I feel like as a group and as a team, we started to really click and find some momentum.”
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Blues captain Brayden Schenn: “He came in in a tough spot too because everyone loved Chief (Berube). Chief was obviously a face for the city, a face for the organization, the first coach to ever win the Cup. When he comes into that, it’s obviously hard for everyone. Drew came in and did a great job. We had a great record underneath him.”
Bannister was previously the head coach of AHL affiliate Springfield (Massachusetts) before his promotion.
“It’s a learning curve for him, too, right?” Schenn said. “First time being an NHL coach. I think we bought in to what he was doing and we came together as a group, were able to have a good record. Whatever happens there, I guess we’ll all be following along.”
Extended seasons?
The Blues could have multiple players playing at the upcoming World Championship, including goaltender Jordan Binnington. Binnington confirmed he would be playing for Canada at the tournament, perhaps a prelude to representing his country at the 4 Nations Face-Off next spring, and the Olympics the year after that.
Defenseman Colton Parayko said he wasn’t sure if he was going. Canada could also call on Jake Neighbours to go back to Worlds after he helped it win gold last year. When asked about Blues players going to Worlds, Armstrong said he would allow those countries to make the announcements.
Armstrong oversees the management team for Hockey Canada, and Rick Nash is the general manager of the team for the World Championship. Armstrong said it was Nash’s job to announce the team.
Injury report
The Blues had a relatively clean injury report Thursday, as Armstrong said Oskar Sundqvist’s surgery to repair a torn ACL would be the only injury that affects the club next season. Sundqvist missed the last 10 games of the season and was given a six-month timeline for recovery.
Neighbours, meanwhile, missed the last five games of the season with an upper-body injury suffered April 6 in San Jose.
“I think I was in a situation where if the games meant more, probably could have played,” Neighbours said. “Just being safe and cautious and not risking anything further.”
AHL news
The Blues sent down forwards Zack Bolduc and Zach Dean plus defenseman Matthew Kessel to AHL affiliate Springfield on Thursday, adding bodies to the Thunderbirds roster for the last two games of the season.
Springfield is clinging to postseason hope, as it must win its last two games of the season and have Lehigh Valley lose all three of its games in regulation in order to clinch a playoff berth. If Springfield qualifies, Bolduc, Dean and Kessel would all be eligible to play in the playoffs.
Forward Adam Gaudette was also named to the AHL’s first All-Star team Thursday as he’s racked up a league-leading 44 goals and 25 assists in 65 games. Gaudette became the first Springfield player to be named to the first All-Star team. The only previous player on an All-Star team was Joel Hofer’s second-team honor last season.
Gaudette will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer.