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The big television experiment is about to begin.

On Saturday night, for the first time in more than a decade and a half, a game on the Blues’ local television schedule will be shown over the air as KMOV (Channel 4) and its secondary Matrix Midwest outlet (Channel 32), carry the team’s home contest against Winnipeg.

This move is being made under terms of the team’s contract with cable’s FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network, the current name of what has been the club’s local telecaster since the 1990s, now emerging from bankruptcy. Blues ratings on that outlet have declined in each of the past three years and are on pace this season for an even lower finish. Key contributing factors are FanDuel’s distribution problems (a significant number of systems don’t carry it), the general decline of regional sports networks in this era of cord cutting and of course the team’s substandard play.

The contest at 6 p.m. Saturday is the first of two set to air on KMOV and three to be shown on Matrix over the next 4½ weeks as Blues officials gauge how a return to broadcast TV affects viewership. These games will give them an indication, albeit with a small sample size.

The telecasts will be produced by FanDuel, with its usual Blues personnel. They are working in conjunction with Trevor Nickerson, vice president and executive producer of the team-run Blue Note Productions.

“This is a new frontier,� Nickerson said. “A frontier born out of the uncertainty that the (regional sports network) world has gotten into over the last few years.�

The last time a locally produced Blues telecast was on an over-the-air station was in the 2008-09 season, when KPLR (Channel 11) shared the package with what’s now FanDuel. The TV world has changed dramatically since then.

“Back then, you got the reach of KPLR and essentially that was it,� Nickerson said. “Now in addition to the reach of Channel 4 (and Matrix), there are ... all the cable and streaming systems they are on and the additional option of watching through the Victory+ streaming service, which will be carrying the games for free (they will not be streamed by FanDuel). “Virtually any connected TV will have access to these games� for free. “That probably hasn’t happened before in Blues history.�

KMOV and Matrix Midwest are owned by Gray Media, whose local operations are run by JD Sosnoff. The stations have been heavily hyping the telecast, including this week running on-screen countdowns listing how long it is until game time as if it was the Super Bowl and not a regular-season NHL game. But he’s basking in the glow of bringing a team’s local production to free TV.

“I think there’s a giant need for that, and we are incredibly grateful to be the partners the Blues have chosen to work with,� Sosnoff said, adding that advertising is nearly sold out for the game Saturday.

By the numbers

While it has been a long time since the club has had one of its own telecasts on a broadcast TV station, a handful of regular-season games carried by national networks have been shown over the air in St. Louis in the ensuing years, and they regularly have drawn significantly better ratings than the local productions.

The last time Blues’ locally produced games were on broadcast TV, 16 years ago, they were seen in an average of 3% of the market, according to viewership tracking firm Nielsen. The only season they previously were on KMOV, 1996-97, the rating was 6.4.

“It will be interesting to see the results,� Sosnoff said. “We have the ability with those (KMOV and Matrix) signals to reach everyone in the St. Louis (market). Other (individual competitors) do not.�

Several factors that could affect audience size: Although Saturday traditionally is the least-watched night for television, the weather is supposed to be cold, thus keeping more people at home than usual. The only other local sporting event going on at that time is City SC’s MLS opener, but that will be streamed behind the Apple TV+ paywall, thus significantly lessening the potential audience competing with hockey. Plus, there is the possibility that the goalies who started Thursday in the title game of the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, the Blues’ Jordan Binnington (Canada) and Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck (United States), will be playing Saturday. On the other side, Winnipeg isn’t a big traditional Blues rival despite having the most points in the NHL at this juncture.

Nickerson pointed out that a new Blues audience could develop.

“You might have people tuning in to this broadcast who haven’t tuned into a hockey game in years,� he said. “There’s going to be an audience that stumbles on this� because KMOV is in the rotation of stations they sample when channel surfing.

Another factor the Blues want to monitor is how these three games that Gray is showing (contests also on March 8 and 25) fare elsewhere. Gray also plans to carry the games over the air in numerous Midwest markets in which it has stations or has agreements with another operator, including Kansas City, Springfield, Columbia and Cape Girardeau in Missouri; Quincy and Peoria in Illinois; Topeka in Kansas; Davenport and Cedar Rapids in Iowa; and Evansville in Indiana.

Blues Chief Revenue and Marketing Office Steve Chapman has said that including those markets is “a major part� of the deal.

On the air

The actual game telecasts should be very similar to what Blues fans are accustomed to seeing on FanDuel, with John Kelly on play-by-play and Jamie Rivers providing analysis. Other than a few subtle tweaks, the most noticeable difference might be the introduction of a camera that specializes in capturing movement and providing close-ups.

“You can’t really blow it up for (just) three games,� Nickerson said of major revisions.

However, the pregame, between periods and postgame show has a bit of a makeover. Former Blues defenseman Chris Pronger has been added to the cast and will work with co-analyst Joey Vitale and host Scott Warmann. Pronger, who spent half his 18-season NHL career with the Blues and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, won two Olympic gold medals with Canada. Vitale, a native St. Louisan who usually is the analyst on Blues radio broadcasts, sometimes moves to the TV side for studio commentary as is the case here.

They are expected to have a spirited discussion of the recent 4 Nations tournament in which the Canadians and Americans were set to play for the title on Thursday night. That is expected to be the first topic of conversation on Saturday’s TV pregame program that’s to begin at 5:30 p.m.

“We feel like coming into that show, it will be the top thing on everyone’s mind from the hockey community, Nickerson said, adding that Pronger will “add a little color, a little flavor and a little bite.�

The pregame, between periods and postgame segments will be conducted from a set that is a little higher in Enterprise Center than the one used for FanDuel telecasts to “give a different perspective, a different vantage point, to mix it up a little bit and give us a bit of a fresh look,� Nickerson said.

He added that those portions of the telecast will be lighter than normal, more like an NHL or NBA studio show on TNT than a typical Blues hockey-centric show.

“Less X’s and O’s and a little more entertainment, more casual conversations than in-depth hockey talk,� he said.

In conclusion Sosnoff, the KMOV and Matrix executive, had a plea for those hoping to see games in coming seasons back on over-the-air TV.

“If fans want to see this continuing down the road, I hope they tune in,� he said.

Super Bowl slowdown

Nielsen, which tracks viewership of television programs, recently updated its system, leading to longer periods in which it posts final figures.

That applied to the recent Super Bowl, as the St. Louis ratings magnet Kansas City Chiefs made their third consecutive appearance in the NFL’s championship contest, and the viewership figures that finally have come in are a bit muddled.

As would be expected with the Chiefs being blown out (they trailed Philadelphia 24-0 at halftime and 34-0 in the third quarter en route to losing 40-22), the local TV rating was down over the previous two years.

Nielsen says 38.2% of the St. Louis market tuned in to Fox affiliate KTVI (Channel 2) for the telecast. Last year’s game (KC 25, San Francisco 22 in overtime) drew a 49.6 rating on KMOV. In 2023, the Chiefs’ 38-35 victory over Philadelphia was on KTVI and generated a 41.4 rating.

However, Fox also is including those who watched this year’s game via streaming in the figures it released and says that boosted the St. Louis audience to 46.1% of the market.

That sets up a bit of an apples-to-oranges situation when comparing ratings. Including streaming, STL ranked 18th nationally for this year’s game (which makes sense given the rout of the Chiefs) after being fourth last year and 10th two seasons ago.

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Things will change quickly for Jordan Binnington and Colton Parayko.

After the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game Thursday night in Boston, the two Blues representing Canada will have little time to adjust back to their lives in St. Louis, hoping to spur a playoff push. The Blues will jump right back into their schedule with a back-to-back over the weekend against the Jets on Saturday and the Avalanche on Sunday.

That means three games in four nights for Parayko. With Binnington expected to split the back-to-back with Joel Hofer, it will still mean three starts in a week for Binnington.

Blues coach Jim Montgomery understands the situation his two players will be in, and the team will look for opportunities to rest them. Just don't expect it to be in games.

"We're definitely going to have to give them more rest," Montgomery said. "They're going to have to play games for us, we know that. If we're coming in, maybe we tell them to stay home a couple of days so that they can regenerate their batteries."

Binnington and Parayko are two of five Blues representatives with Team Canada, as general manager Doug Armstrong is part of the management team and goaltending coach David Alexander and video coordinator Elliott Mondou are on the coaching staff.

Binnington started all three games for Canada entering Thursday's championship game against the United States, posting a .892 save percentage and 2.60 goals against average.

Parayko did not have a point in round-robin play against Sweden, the U.S. and Finland. He averaged 19:39 of ice time per game on the Canadian blue line.

"Not only have they not had the break that they all had, but they're playing real intense (games)," Montgomery said. "The game (Thursday) is going to be emotional. It's going to be physically and mentally draining. They need a break from that."

Binnington and Parayko are playing with and against players they will see over the weekend. Connor Hellebuyck (U.S.), Kyle Connor (U.S.) and Josh Morrissey (Canada) will play for Winnipeg on Saturday. Nathan MacKinnon (Canada) and Cale Makar (Canada) will be with Colorado when it visits on Sunday.

In the last 26 games of the regular season, the Blues will be relying heavily on both Parayko and Binnington.

Parayko has anchored the team's top pairing all season and averages 24:13 of ice time a night in St. Louis, about a minute and a half more than his next-closest teammate. His 12 goals and 29 points lead all Blues defensemen, and seven more points will establish a new career high for Parayko.

"He's going to play both games (this weekend), and he's going to play 24 minutes," Montgomery said. "He's a physical specimen, and he takes care of himself so well and he loves to compete. Thankfully, he's only averaging (19½) minutes there."

Binnington figures to start Sunday against the Avalanche, as a Hofer start Saturday would allow an extra day of rest. The Blues have five sets of back-to-backs the rest of the season.

The rooting interest inside the Blues' dressing room favored the Canadians, as there are only four Americans on the active roster: Justin Faulk, Ryan Suter, Nick Leddy and Cam Fowler.

Montgomery himself is Canadian but made it clear his pick had to do with his relationships.

"I pick with people," Montgomery said. "I've got five people I work with that are there. It's an easy one. ... Hopefully, they come back victorious and bring that winning culture right here into our locker room. Spread it around."

• The Blues did not practice Thursday and will return to the ice on Friday morning at Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights.

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Granted 10 days off the ice and then four potential practice days, the Blues coaching staff began digging into how to beat ... the Blues.

Coach Jim Montgomery's staff scouted their own team during the 4 Nations Face-Off break, finding weaknesses and possible improvements in the Blues' even-strength game, plus power play and penalty kill.

Montgomery asked associate coach Steve Ott (who runs the power play) to take on the penalty kill from an opposing angle. Assistant coach Mike Weber (who runs the penalty kill) took a peek at the power play.

"Where can we exploit you?" Montgomery said. "Where do we think? It's like a team scouting each other. We take that information and that's where we think we can really grow."

More than that, the Blues looked for ways to improve their forecheck by studying the teams that are elite at it. The staff took the five best forechecking teams in the league — measured by how good a team is at retrieving pucks and preventing exits — and looked for ways to implement that in St. Louis.

Of course, that included more homework on Carolina and Florida, which have been at the top of the league in that category consistently.

"We took some wrinkles of that," Montgomery said. "We're not going to carbon copy any one team, but there are some things that the top five teams all have in common, and we're trying to make sure we have those same types of work habits, stick details and physicality."

The Blues practiced those details Wednesday at Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights, the team's second practice since returning to the ice and preparing for Saturday's game against Winnipeg.

The first part of practice was devoted to "trying to be more aggressive on our forecheck," Montgomery said, and reviving their tracking habits. The second part revolved around the penalty kill.

The Blues' penalty kill has been one of the weakest parts of their team game this season, and the 71.3% success rate is the worst in franchise history since PK tracking began in 1977. Since Christmas, the Blues have killed only 60% of penalties, which is the worst mark in the NHL.

"We're really focusing on running straight lines, knowing our responsibilities in the diamond, knowing our responsibilities when it resets below the top of the circles," Montgomery said. "And then the stops and starts, when one guy goes, the other guys got to anticipate that next pass and get there, and the stick positioning that goes with it."

The Blues entered the break having allowed 10 power-play goals in their previous 10 games. They have not gone three straight games with a perfect PK since Nov. 25 to Dec. 3, the first four games of Montgomery's tenure with the Blues.

Montgomery said he previously had his staff scout themselves in Boston.

"We felt it was really good feedback, especially the special teams portion," Montgomery said. "The five-on-five portion, it was more beneficial this time through. That year we did it in Boston, we're having such a good year that there wasn't much to poke holes at.

"The feedback, for me, was a lot better this time around just because there was more feedback. Same thing with special teams both times. You want to know where you think you're vulnerable and where you can get better and how."

• Forward Alexandre Texier was not at Blues practice Wednesday, the second session he's missed while out with an illness. Texier also missed the final two games before the 4 Nations break because he was sick.
• The Blues only had 11 forwards on the ice Wednesday with Texier sick and Zack Bolduc still with AHL affiliate Springfield (Massachusetts) but still showed what potential forward lines could look like Saturday vs. Winnipeg.

Jake Neighbours, Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich were together, as were Dylan Holloway, Brayden Schenn and Jordan Kyrou. Alexey Toropchenko, Radek Faksa and Nathan Walker formed a familiar unit, while Oskar Sundqvist and Mathieu Joseph skated as a duo with a rotating winger. It's assumed that either Texier or Bolduc would go with Sundqvist and Joseph.

• The Blues are not scheduled to practice Thursday.

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Get your questions ready and join in at 1 p.m. Wednesday for our weekly Blues chat.

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Transcript

Matthew DeFranks: Good afternoon. The 4 Nations break is almost over. The Blues are back to practice, and will play again on Saturday. Let's get to your questions.

Tylerg: Matty D, hope you've been checking out the 4Nations action. The NHL hit a grand slam with this idea; absolute 10/10 event. My question is this: if Canada beats the US in the final, is Binnington the goalie going into the Olympics next year? Assuming the Blues miss the playoffs, does Binnington play in the WCH tourney this summer (he was shaky last year) and try to go triple gold by this time next year after the Olympics? Think about it, Binnington has a shot at a 4Nations win, WCH gold, Olympic gold in one calendar year, assuming he keeps winning. Pretty cool, but also the US, Sweden and Czech are stacked. Having said that, go team USA! Thanks for doing this per usual bro, we appreciate your opinion

Matthew DeFranks: It's a great question and a good thing to think about. I think we all see where the Blues are headed this year, so Binnington will likely be available for the World Championships. I think a lot of players particiapted in the Worlds last year because of the 4 Nations and Olympic evaluation process, and I imagine this summer will bring along something similar.

Matthew DeFranks: I looked it up, and somehow there's not a goalie that's part of the Triple Gold Club. You would think Brodeur would be there, but he's got two silvers at Worlds. Luongo and Price don't have a Cup. Roy never played at the Worlds.

Matthew DeFranks: So I would imagine Binnington is interested in at least chasing that if he can, and while he can. International management staffs appreciate when players go play at the World Championship, and Binnington might need every bit of goodwill he can wrangle if he finishes this tournament below .900.

Matthew DeFranks: This will be a fun trivia answer one day, but the last member of the Triple Gold Club right now is Valtteri Filppula. Snuck in there by winning Olympic gold with Finland in 2022 when no NHL players were there.

Easy Ed - fan since 1967: Matt, happy there is coverage of 4Nations in the P-D. Knowing that Montgomery likes forward pairs, if the Blues bring up Dvorsky at the end of the year, might they also bring up his winger, Kaskimaki? I think that would benefit both players--and the team. If so, would it be after the trade deadline, which is when again? Keep up the good work.

Matthew DeFranks: The trade deadline is March 7 at 2 p.m. CT. The Blues will be in Anaheim that day.

Matthew DeFranks: As for a potential Dvorsky recall, I would look for it more towards the end of the season when the Blues are closer to playoff elimination. The last two years, they have played the young guys, but not until it was way, way, way out of reach to still chase a playoff spot. We're not at that point yet.

Matthew DeFranks: Aleksanteri Kaskimaki has played well in Springfield this season, so it's not like a recall would be out of nowhere, but it could also be another player when you're already looking at potentially welcoming Snuggerud and Dvorsky. So I guess we'll see.

Jim Lang: The Blues may get a fairly high draft choice. If they were simply drafting for need, what position would they be looking at?

Matthew DeFranks: Purely for need, it would have to be defense. They addressed part of it last season with Jiricek, Ralph and Fischer, but it's still somewhat thin compared to the forwards the Blues have in the pipeline. Now, it's not advisable for teams to draft for need, especially when they're picking in the top 10, which the Blues would be projected to do right now.

Jim Lang: I've been following sports for 60 years. Of all sports, my view is Hockey players seem to be the most well adjusted, well behaved and polite. Do you agree? If yes, why do you think that is?

Matthew DeFranks: I haven't covered the NFL or NBA in a regular capacity, so tough for me to speak on that. But my one guess? Hockey players make less money than the other sports. Could also be something to hockey being such a team sport that that can bleed into personal lives, the community aspect of a sport. Who knows?

JWise2727: What time do the Blues practice today? Any changes you see coming to the line combinations or will they stick with something similar to the last game before the break against Chicago?

Matthew DeFranks: The Blues practiced at 10:30 today. They only had 11 forwards, so a couple lines were rotating a bit. But it looked like Neighbours-Thomas-Buchnevich, Holloway-Schenn-Kyrou, Toropchenko-Faksa-Walker and then Sundqvist and Joseph together. Would imagine that's where either Texier or Bolduc goes when one of them returns to practice.

Matthew DeFranks: On D, there was obviously no Parayko. But Broberg with Faulk, Suter with Tucker and Leddy with Fowler.

Roy Hobbs 3.0: Enjoyed your Otto Stenberg piece and the bonus Hugh McGing coverage within it.:)

Matthew DeFranks: Got to always look out for the St. Hugh-natics.

Matthew DeFranks: If anyone missed the interview with Steve Konowalchuk on Otto Stenberg, he talked about how much he enjoyed getting Stenberg early and being able to get his hands on the former first-rounder. Talked about how many different areas of the game that Stenberg can touch, and his adjustment to North American hockey.

Robert: Hello Matthew: Doug Armstrong suggested recently that the Blues' core might need re-evaluation and possibly a shake up. If you were to guess, what are the odds that DA makes a move to trade off a current core member like Thomas, Kyrou, Buchnevich, Parayko, or Binnington? There are rumors of other teams interest in Schenn, so moving him would only be a surprise

Matthew DeFranks: I think that the Blues need to listen on everyone, regardless of whether they're interested in actually trading them. It's the front office's job to understand the market value of the players on their roster, and you'll only find that out by talking to other teams. I would find it hard to see the Blues trade pieces like Kyrou or Thomas, but if they were even entertaining that, it would have to probably be before their no-trade clauses kick in this summer. Buchnevich would be tough because of his contract, performance and his no-trade clause that was added to this season.

Matthew DeFranks: I do think that Doug's comments about the core don't just come out of nowhere. If order for someone like him to say that out loud, it's something that he's thought of multiple times before. At this point in the re-whatever, the Blues have to be open to any options out there. But I am of the opinion that the core pieces themselves are fine, there just aren't enough of them. There's not much support behind the Thomas and Kyrou-level pieces, especially when Thomas and Buchnevich are struggling.

Robert: ...because of his no trade clause and contract.

Matthew DeFranks: Right, this is another consideration for Schenn. I feel that the Blues value him more than other teams because of his captaincy, his ability to play with heart, and the fact that he centered their best line for a good chunk of the season. From the outside, you have a 33-year-old, 45-point forward with two more years at $6.5M. Even with the cap going up in the future, the $6.5M can still be a sticking point for some teams this season. It just seems like a misalignment of value that makes a trade difficult.

Hocko in Colorado: If I'm recalling correctly, Stenberg is a natural center, but playing on wing now. Why not keep him at center, knowing the lack the depth there and the possibility of Schenn leaving?

Matthew DeFranks: Most guys are natural centers, but end up moving to wing because of a variety of reasons: lack of skating, lack of defensive details, losing faceoffs. So it's not surprising that Stenberg was drafted as a center. And he's played wing for basically all of the last two seasons in the SHL, Allsvenskan, Swedish World Juniors team and in the AHL.

Robert: Matt: I don't know about you and other Blues fans, but I was pleasantly surprised to see Colton Parayko's beat down of JT Miller in the first US /Canada game. Safe to say no other NHL players are going to be instigating with Colt55, don't you think?

Matthew DeFranks: It will still happen at the net-front, I'm sure, just because that's what happens at the net-front. Parayko doesn't show it often, but that is in him. I remember the fight with Klim Kostin last year in San Jose and even the one with Brett Ritchie six years ago in Dallas, when Jim Montgomery was the coach of the Stars.

Matthew DeFranks: Parayko's got the one thing you can't teach in a fight: size. And that will almost always be on his side in the NHL, outside of the true heavyweights like Reaves or a newer big guy like Rempe.

GD: I know that 4-Nations and Olympics are for national pride but these players are at a risk of serious injury and impacting their teams playoff chances once tourney is over. Who is responsible for salaries, medical insurance etc. when this happens?

Matthew DeFranks: I know that for the Olympics, the IIHF and IOC are responsible for insurance. But with the 4 Nations being an NHL event, I would have to imagine it's the league. Not sure how it breaks down from the league to the teams. It's a good question and I don't have a good answer.

Sctfog: Any guess at the trade value of a few of the Blues? For example what could they get for Schenn, would they have to eat a bad co tractor to move Faulk, could they get more than a 3rd for Binnington? Maybe more interesting, if you are trading for a top 4 D or top 6 forward prison t would you have to include a valuable piece like Neighbours? Seems like the Blues are in a tough spot w this year bring a high pick and not a lot of picks following.

Matthew DeFranks: I haven't been very good historically at accurately gauging trade value, but it feels like the Blues are in a spot that taking back bad contracts or paying an extra asset shouldn't be on the table. They should be looking at accumulating more draft capital because, as you said, they're pretty light on that this year. If the Blues want to remove a player from the roster, they have other avenues, whether waivers, buyout, retained salary, etc. But we have seen the Blues use capital to dump Kevin Hayes, and Armstrong has never bought out a player. Not sure we're going to see that in his last summer as Blues GM.

Sctfog: The PK is supposed to be in the 80's, PP in the 29's for a good team, yet they have struggled for three years w on or the other. The PK is particularly confusing as that's normally not a talent issue but more of a system and will issue. Fix the PK and they have a few more wins.

Matthew DeFranks: It's been horrible this season, and particularly since Christmas. They are at 60% since Christmas, good for last in the league. 60! Overall, it's the worst PK in franchise history, and the last time they were this bad, Mike Van Ryn got fired. The Blues tried something different this break, with coaches scouting the Blues themselves. So that meant Mike Weber (who runs the PK) looked for holes in the Blues power play. Steve Ott (runs the PP) did the same for the PK. And then the Blues worked on the penalty kill today at practice.

Matthew DeFranks: We'll see how they finish the season, but it's an area that has clouded the positive steps the team has made at 5v5.

Sctfog: while I don't always see it w the eye test, the analytics look favorable fir Bolduc, yet ice time remains sparse. What am I missing, or what do the coaches want. Is he going to be a top 6 or even top 9 player?

Matthew DeFranks: It may be premature on my part, but I worry about Zack Bolduc. This season has felt very meh for him. When he's been good, it's been sort of just a one and done situation. He didn't really follow up that game in New York and the game against Florida recently was good. Usually, you see players make the jump from the AHL to the NHL when they are too good for the AHL. And Bolduc was never really at that point. He had eight goals and 25 points in 50 AHL games last season, which is low production when you look at what Dvorsky and Kaskimaki are doing as AHL rookies this season. So I worry if he's going to actually end up being a reliable producer in the top six, even if we've seen the numbers he put up in junior hockey.

Sctfog: Faulk losing his offense, though some analytics suggest the D is ok, is surprising. He's always been an O first player, and w Broberg he has a good partner. It seems like he's almost limiting Broberg rather than being assisted. Faulk diesnt seem to get up in the play as often if my memory is correct, yet Monty wants his D to move up ice.

Matthew DeFranks: It's been an issue since he basically went without a point for a month in October/November, and hasn't improved. I don't have the answer why there hasn't been more offense from him except that he's shooting the puck at a rate that's his lowest since his second year in the NHL. And for the first time in his Blues career, they are a worse team offensively with him on the ice vs. when he's off the ice.

Sctfog: The false promise of last spring, the analytics never supported the Blues as a playoff team, led to a mid round pick. Any chance the Blues look at this opportunity as their last great chance to get a top pick in an admittedly medium draft? Teams have traded away assets in the past just to improve their odds. It's not likely they are really going to be even tangentially in the hunt.

Matthew DeFranks: Right, the Blues were more closely aligned with a bottom-three or bottom-five team than a playoff team, analytically. ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ were saved by a top-five goalie tandem and a hot power play. This year is kind of the opposite where they're mid-pack analytically at worst, but have been stung by a poor PK and inconsistent goaltending. It hasn't been Armstrong's MO to give up early, so I'll believe it when I see it. But there is a good argument, especially since they need a ridiculous record the rest of the way to even become relevant in the playoff hunt.

GoThunder: The Blues simply aren't as talented as nearly every other team in the NHL, so I get where they're at, but what's your take on Nashville? That team looked like a rugged, veteran team with decent goaltending. Now they're in contention for the lottery.

Matthew DeFranks: Yeah, they shouldn't be where they're at. Their underlying numbers are decent at 5v5, as a top-10 team in xG%. But they have the second-worst shooting percentage at 5v5, and Saros has been below average for the second straight season. Nyquist has taken a big step back this season. There would be optimism for regression overall next season if Josi, O'Reilly, Stamkos, Marchessault and Skjei weren't another year older.

Robert: I appreciate everything that Brayden Schenn has brought to the Blues in his time on the team, and he will always be a hero for being a part of our Stanley Cup championship. Considering his contract and the team's current position in the standings, wouldn't it make sense to move him, even if the return is less than optimal? The Blues could pick up a draft choice, and give him a chance to make a difference on a contender, while opening up a spot for a younger forward. He is the captain and a leader and the team is has limited center depth, but the team really seems to be going nowhere, sad to say...

Matthew DeFranks: I get that point, but Doug Armstrong has done this before where he sets a price and basically dares teams to come meet it. The Blues aren't in a time crunch here. Honestly, it might make more sense as a summer deal anyway. Allows the cap to go up, and for Schenn's trade protection to lessen. And gives the Blues a chance to reassess what they do with the captaincy.

Dr. Girlfriend: I read that Monty has a say in roster construction. Does Steen have input as well or is he still in a shadowing phase? If he does, do the Blues have a committee system on roster decisions?

Matthew DeFranks: I would say Montgomery has a heavier say in roster deployment than roster construction, to be honest. But the Blues have been an organization that makes decisions together. It's like that with a lot of teams, really. But Doug Armstrong will talk with Tim Taylor, Ryan Miller, Alexander Steen, etc. about making decisions. Sometimes, that also includes guys like Al MacInnis, Peter Chiarelli and Scott Mellanby.

Matthew DeFranks: Queue is empty, so we'll call it there. Have a good day, and a good week everyone!

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Fans who want to watch the Cardinals and Blues without a cable subscription just got another option.

As of Wednesday, FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network is available as an add-on through Prime Video at a cost of $19.99 per month, the same amount it costs to buy the channel directly through FanDuel.

An is required to be able to subscribe to FanDuel via Amazon, so this option is mostly beneficial for those who already subscribe to Amazon Prime. Amazon Prime costs $14.99 per month or $139 per year. There's another option at $8.99 per month for just Prime Video without the other Amazon Prime benefits.

FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Midwest airs most St. Louis Cardinals and St. Louis Blues games as well as St. Louis University men's basketball games.

The deal to make FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network available on Amazon was first announced in November.

In addition to Amazon as well as directly from FanDuel, FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network is also available in St. Louis on Spectrum, U-verse TV, DirecTV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

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Cardinals and Blues games will soon be available on Prime Video, too

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Post-Dispatch Blues beat reporter Matthew DeFranks joined columnist Jeff Gordon to preview the 4 Nations Face-Off title game and the stretch run of the regular season. 

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The volume on the ice grew with each hit that Pavel Buchnevich and Alexey Toropchenko laid on each other. The battle in the corner drew a vocal reaction. The reverse hit in the opposite corner by Toropchenko on Buchnevich resulted in stick taps.

It was the first day of Blues practice after a 10-day break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, and Buchnevich and Toropchenko personified the competitiveness that coach Jim Montgomery was looking for Tuesday afternoon.

"I thought it was the highlight of practice," Montgomery said. "You know the awesome part was that they went at each other so physically hard, as hard as some of the hits we've seen in games when we're playing.

"And they had smiles on their face. ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ were loving being out there, working and being physical. We need to replicate that again tomorrow and the next two following days before we start up Saturday."

Toropchenko: "It's part of the practices, stay hard on each other and make your teammates and yourself better."

Tuesday afternoon was the first time that NHL teams could hold practice during the 4 Nations Face-Off, which concludes on Thursday night with a Canada-United States rematch to decide the champion. It was one of four practice days available to the Blues before they return to their schedule hosting the Jets on Saturday and the Avalanche on Sunday.

Tuesday's practice lasted close to an hour, and Montgomery said "the battle level was very impressive, good first day."

"Today was about getting back to feeling the puck, some skill work in the first 25-30 minutes and last 30 minutes was all about competing, getting back to work," Montgomery said. "We feel that our consistency needs to come from a higher level of competing on pucks consistently."

The Blues are staring down a tough road in the final 26 games of the season.

At 25-26-5, the Blues are eight points behind Vancouver for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. St. Louis has also played one more game than the Canucks, who are on pace for 94 points this season. In order to reach that threshold, the Blues would have to go 19-6-1 the rest of the way.

"I'm trying not to focus on the outcome," Montgomery said. "I feel that we need to focus on our consistency, and our preparation daily and the results will take care of itself. That's where we are right now. We know we're in a little bit of a hole; we've got to win a lot of hockey games."

The Blues entered the break with a 10-round shootout win over the Blackhawks, an important win that came on the heels of a 1-5-1 stretch. ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ will play four of the next five at home, before playing seven of the next eight on the road.

"But if our mind goes to results and we lose our first game, we can spiral the wrong way," Montgomery said. "We want to be able to focus on the process that allows us to have success: the consistency of competing, of winning goal-line races, winning wall battles and having numbers at nets."

Personnel updates

• Forward Alexandre Texier was not on the ice for practice because he was sick.

"He's ill," Montgomery said. "He fell ill last night from what the reports are. Not good enough to be able to come to the rink."

This is the third stint that Texier come down sick, also including after Christmas break vs. Nashville and the last two games before the 4 Nations break.

• Defenseman Tyler Tucker was on the ice Tuesday after missing the last three games before the break with an upper-body injury suffered Feb. 2 in Utah.
• With Jordan Binnington in Boston with Team Canada, Will Cranley was in St. Louis on Tuesday to practice with the Blues. Cranley has spent most of the year with ECHL affiliate Florida.
• Forward Zack Bolduc remains with AHL affiliate Springfield (Massachusetts) since the Blues sent him down to play games during the break. The Thunderbirds have one more game Wednesday night before the Blues return to action.

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Steve Konowalchuk got his first glimpse of Otto Stenberg at Blues development camp over the summer.

“I remember at the time thinking: Dang, I’ve got to wait a year before I get to work with him,� Konowalchuk said. “Then, all of a sudden, we get him early.�

Konowalchuk, the head coach of the Blues’ AHL affiliate in Springfield, Massachusetts, ended up with his hands on Stenberg about a month ago, when Stenberg made the jump to North American hockey in mid-January. Stenberg had a two-point game in his AHL debut on Jan. 18 and has two goals and five assists in 13 games with Springfield.

The Blues originally drafted Stenberg with the 25th pick in 2023, one of three first-rounders taken by St. Louis during that draft.

“He’s just a complete hockey player,� Konowalchuk said. “You can check all the boxes from hockey sense to skating to skill to shot to compete. He checks the boxes. For me, it’s just a matter of him keep building on those areas, but getting strong as he gets older. I can rely on him for penalty kill, and he can play power play.�

Stenberg was drafted as a center but has primarily played wing across the past two seasons with the Swedish under-20 team and professionally in Sweden. Konowalchuk said the Blues organization views Stenberg as a winger.

In Springfield, he’s played left wing mostly alongside center Hugh McGing and right wing Simon Robertsson.

“His line, doesn’t matter who I play them against, I can trust him,� Stenberg said. “He’s been a nice addition that we didn’t expect to get, at least I didn’t, this year. When we talk about the depth of our lineup, he’s a big part of that. Getting him is a certainly a bonus for our team.�

As the Blues have fallen out of playoff contention in each of the previous two seasons, April has brought along with it an infusion of youth. In 2023, McGing, Matthew Kessel and Joel Hofer made late-season appearances. Last year, it was Zack Bolduc and Zach Dean.

While much of the attention has been focused on Dalibor Dvorsky’s potential NHL debut, Stenberg could also make a potential late-season cameo once the Blues have faded further from the postseason race. Of course, as long as his adjustment to North American hockey continues.

“It’s a pretty fast, north-south hockey game,� Konowalchuk said. “You get that puck in your end, you get going north and you get going on the attack, whether it’s a rush or whether it’s a forecheck. I think the European game sometimes likes to slow it down, there’s more space and you can do set breakouts and set regroups a little bit more.�

And what about Dvorsky, the No. 10 pick in the 2023 by the Blues?

Dvorsky is fourth among AHL rookies with 35 points in 43 games, and represented Springfield at the AHL All-Star Game two weeks ago. He’s got nine points in his past seven games.

“I really like offensively where he’s trending with the puck the last couple weeks,� Konowalchuk said. “He’s strong on it, cycling it. He’s holding that puck and making the right play with it, confidence with it. You know he has a good shot, so I like that part where he’s stronger on pucks and having it on his stick more. That’s good.

“Defensively, he’s better. He’s grown as the year’s went on, but for the NHL, we’d still like to him get a little bit better in that area. Mistakes in the D-zone end up costing at the NHL level. They do here as well, but certainly at the NHL level. That’s, again, where all young guys (need to improve). It doesn’t come easy to a lot of young guys, but he’s certainly working on it. He’s certainly better than he was. As soon as that gets there, I think he’s off and running.�

Aleksanteri Kaskimaki has 28 points in 46 games, putting him 15th in scoring among AHL rookies. For most of the season, Kaskimaki (third-round pick in 2022) has played on the same line as Dvorsky.

“He’s grown all year, and he grew into a big role for us when guys were hurt,� Konowalchuk said. “He was playing 20 minutes a game. Smart hockey player, with and without the puck, 200-foot game, doesn’t cheat the game. Plays with the kind of character you’re looking for in the NHL.�

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