After the departure of defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk via trade to the Washington Capitals on Feb. 27, Alex Pietrangelo got more ice time and had a significant boost in production; he had 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 20 games after the trade, compared to 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists) in 60 games before. Colton Parayko, 24, was relied more on defense.
Lastly, you can never count out a team with Vladimir Tarasenko, who's had at least 37 goals and 73 points in each of the past three seasons. He's one of the best players in the League. The addition of center Brayden Schenn in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers was a great move as well. He does a little bit of everything, plays in all situations and tied for the League lead in power-play goals last season (17).
Minuses: The biggest thing for me is that they will need some production from lower down in their lineup. After the top-six forwards, someone will have to emerge. Alexander Steen (hand), Patrik Berglund (shoulder) and Robby Fabbri (knee) are injured, with Fabbri out for the season. And defenseman Jay Bouwmeester (ankle) will miss time as well.
They also could be lacking physically after trading forward Ryan Reaves to the Penguins on June 23. Reaves (6-foot-1, 225 pounds), who was drafted by the Blues in 2005 and spent the first seven years of his NHL career with St. Louis, had 104 penalty minutes last season and wasn't afraid to mix it up when necessary.