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St. Louis Blues: Is It Championship or Bust This Season?

By Alexandra Russo

ST. LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 07: St. Louis Blues' Brayden Schenn, left, Jaden Schwartz, center, and Vladimir Tarasenko, right, celebrate after Vladimir Tarasenko scored a goal during the third period the Dallas Stars game versus the St. Louis Blues on October 7, 2017, at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. (Photo by Tim Spyers/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ST. LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 07: St. Louis Blues' Brayden Schenn, left, Jaden Schwartz, center, and Vladimir Tarasenko, right, celebrate after Vladimir Tarasenko scored a goal during the third period the Dallas Stars game versus the St. Louis Blues on October 7, 2017, at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. (Photo by Tim Spyers/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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After years of coming close but not winning it all, are the St. Louis Blues approaching a Stanley Cup or bust scenario?

The St. Louis Blues are a team that has a lot of potential. They’ve come close quite a few times but haven’t reached the ultimate goal. After all their struggles, the Blues could be approaching the end of the line. The overall feeling in the St. Louis Blues’ locker room is that they have the ability to go all the way. So what’s prevented them from getting over that last hurdle?

There are a few factors. One is that back in 2010-2011 (when their playoff streak started) they weren’t an extremely experienced roster. Another reason is that they kept running out of energy towards the end of their first-round series.

As time went on, however, they were able to make the Western Conference Finals in the 2016 playoffs. They were eliminated at the hands of the San Jose Sharks but put up a good fight throughout the series.

In 2017, the Blues made a huge change when they fired head coach Ken Hitchcock and replaced him with former adversary Mike Yeo. Under Yeo, they had the most amount of points from February 1st to the end of the season.

Despite a great end to the regular season, they only managed to get to the second round. They were eliminated by the eventual Western Conference Champions, the Nashville Predators in the second round. So what does that mean for this season? How can they accurately measure their success?

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Most teams consider success getting to a Conference Final. For the Blues, however, they’ve already achieved that goal recently. Now it’s time for them to take it a step further.

They have the roster to be able to get over the hurdle and go all the way. However, the competition around them is what’s stopped them. Besides the Metropolitan Division, the Central Division is arguably the hardest to play in.

That’s why it’s difficult to be able to know what exactly defines “success” for them. However, they’ve made a lot of changes and have gotten off to a great start. The confidence the Blues have in themselves right now can lead them to a Cup Final. There’s no reason that’s out of their reach.

Once teams reach the Cup Final, though, anything can happen. Saying that the St. Louis Blues have to win the Stanley Cup for them to call this season a success is a bit extreme for now.

Next: 3 Burning Questions For The Blues

They have a young, talented roster, and they’ll have time to reach that goal. For now, they should take it one game at a time and concentrate on making the playoffs. After all, the playoffs always prove to be what no one is expecting.

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