St Louis Blues on The Hockey News
Player to watch vs. Capitals: Adam Gaudette
ST. LOUIS -- My St. Louis Blues player to watch against the Washington Capitals on Saturday is forward Adam Gaudette.
Player to watch vs. Capitals: Adam Gaudette (1:29)Well, he will get the chance to play with Nathan Walker, who scored twice Thursday against the Washington Capitals, and Kevin Hayes in the rematch on Saturday night, and Blues interim coach Drew Bannister indicated Gaudette may get a chance to jump onto the power play tonight.
Gaudette scored 24 goals with the Thunderbirds and likes to shoot the puck, and after the Blues were 0-for-5 with the man advantage on Thursday, why not give Gaudette the chance to shoot on his off wing if the man advantage presents itself tonight?
Gaudette's path back to NHL took a lot of patience, hard work, most importantly: persistence
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- If there's one word that sticks out in Adam Gaudette's vocabulary these days, it's persistence.
The road has been long, arduous at times that would make one question the desire and willingness to continue down such a path, but for the St. Louis Blues forward, the road back to the NHL has come full circle, and no matter how long it lasts, the 2018 Hobey Baker Award winner is going to savor it and do his best to make it last.
Adam Gaudette (88) won the Hobey Baker Award in 2018, but has needed time to get his game where he feels it needs to be to be an every day NHL player."I appreciate the grind and the work to get back here," Gaudette said Friday. "It just goes to show not to take things for granted. It was definitely a long road to get back. My goal now is to stick and keep getting better."
Gaudette was recalled from Springfield of the American Hockey League on Wednesday when the Blues put Kasperi Kapanen on injured-reserve with a lower-body injury, and Gaudette made his re-entry into the NHL on Thursday in a 5-2 loss against the Washington Capitals.
Gaudette's last game was on April 29, 2022 with the Ottawa Senators, or one year, eight months and 20 days since his last NHL game.
In between, there was a stop representing USA at the World Championships in 2022, then onto the Toronto Marlies of the AHL before being dealt to the Blues as part of the trade that sent Ryan O'Reilly to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 17, and Gaudette has been with the Thunderbirds ever since.
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He had played in 218 NHL games with the Vancouver Canucks, Chicago Blackhawks and Senators spanning six seasons with limited production. It was a mindset at that point that the 27-year-old needed to put in the work to get back.
"I feel like it took developing my overall game, not just the scoring, more the details and the defensive side of the game and having confidence in that and playing the right way," Gaudette said. "I think that propels the scoring and doing the right things and the little things leads to scoring chances. I've always been able to take advantage of my chances and put them in the back of the net. Now having the confidence playing the right way and know the right spots to be is huge and it's helped my game a ton."
It would have been easy for Gaudette to quit and pivot in a different direction, but the Braintree, Mass.-born, Taunton, Mass. native chose to allow the mindset to stay positive no matter the challenges and circumstances.
"It can, but I really pride myself on not letting it and just trying to be the best I can be wherever I am," Gaudette said. "As an older guy, veteran down there in 'Springy,' I really got to work on my leadership qualities and helped the young guys. In doing so, it helped me. Now I'm just more confident, not just on the ice but interacting with the guys and knowing the right things to say around the locker room and stuff like that. But I really pride myself on not letting anything get to me and get down. Just knowing if I put the work in, I'm going to get that opportunity and if I put the work in, I'm going to be ready for that opportunity when it comes, and feel like I'm in a great spot now and I feel as though in a year and a half, I'm a much better player now than I was the last time I was in the league."
Before Thursday, Adam Gaudette (left) played his last game in the NHL with the Ottawa Senators against the Philadelphia Flyers on April 29, 2022.Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Gaudette was tearing it up in Springfield, playing for current Blues interim coach Drew Bannister. He was leading the AHL in goal scoring through his recall with 24 goals, playing mostly with Nathan Walker, who's on recall with the Blues currently as well, and Matthew Peca.
The trip formed a heck of a bond, and now that Gaudette and Walker are back in the big show, it's proof that persistence pays off, and having someone with common goals trying to take a similar path helps along that journey.
"When you're friends off the ice, it helps on the ice too," Walker said. "We kind of hit it off right from the beginning and you can kind of see it on the ice too. You can see in practice every day how hard he works. In Springy, we kind of pushed each other as well to push the pace of practice and make sure we're having a good practice and work ethic. I think that started kind of with the older guys and kind of trickled down as well. It's good to see everyone put in the effort for that stuff.
"He's a shooter. He shoots pucks when he's in a good spot to shoot and when he puts it on net, there's a high chance it's going to go in. I'm obviously just going to try and get him the puck tomorrow in a good spot and let him do the rest."
Gaudette said the friendship with Walker, who's journey has led him all over the world, really helped put things in perspective.
"We became pretty tight right away," Gaudette said. "We're the only two guys on the team to have kids. Our kids are hanging out with each other and what not. We've both kind of had the same mindset. You can tell down there with that mindset that we did the right things and we led the right way and we were a big part of that team down there. Along with 'Pecs' on our line, there was a lot of fun to develop chemistry as a line.
"I feel like since college really, I feel like I haven't had a line I could play with as much as these guys, and it's tough to develop chemistry when you're not on a set line. It was a lot of fun. We weren't really thinking about the NHL. We were just trying to put our team in 'Springy' in the best spot to win and all three of us were having really good years and kind of driving the bus down there."
The Blues can use shooters, and Gaudette won't hesitate to shoot the puck. His 24 goals came off 130 shots, far and wide the leader on the Thunderbirds, and they've come from a unique set of circumstances.
"I've always liked to shoot the puck. I've always worked on it," Gaudette said. "I was always obsessed with taking one-timers since I was a little kid and trying to hit the hard shots that not many people can pull off. I work on it a lot, different types of shots. I added a bunch of different types of shots in my repertoire, shooting on the move, shooting through sticks and through guys and changing angles. I think that's what helps me is my shot's pretty deceptive and I can get it off pretty quick. Every day I'm working on different types of shots that I like to use in the game. It's funny because a couple goals I scored this year guys have seen me working on those shots in warmups and they make comments like, 'Hey I seen you doing that in warmups.' That's why I do it if I get an opportunity like that in the game, I know exactly what I'm going to do with the puck."
Gaudette's NHL numbers won't woo and wow you. He has 70 points (27 goals, 43 assists) in 219 regular-season games and no points in 10 Stanley Cup playoff games with the Canucks in 2019-20. But after signing with Toronto in the summer of 2022, he has 51 goals in 102 AHL games, including 20 with the Marlies in 20 games last season before being traded to St. Louis.
"Credit to the guys in Toronto," Gaudette said. "They worked with me a lot. It was good in Toronto. I did a lot more skill work, skating work with them. That got my confidence to carry the puck and stuff through the neutral zone, hang onto pucks and then when I got to Springfield, it was more systematic in playing the right way stuff. Every year I just take little things and work on those until I master them and then onto the next thing. You get confidence working on one part of your game, and then you get that down and you can move onto the next thing. I pride myself on getting a little better every year and I think I've done a pretty good job of that."
There comes certain types of pressures being a Hobey Baker Award winner when Gaudette finished a solid three-year run at Northeastern University, including 30 goals and 30 assists in 38 games in 2017-18 as a junior. The Blues are going through it now with defenseman Scott Perunovich, who won the award in 2020.
"I think so and people expect a lot from you if you're a Hobey Baker winner," Gaudette said. "I felt like there was a lot expected of me when I came into the league, but looking back at it, I don't think I was totally ready yet. I wish I kind of had the development that I had the past year and a half in the AHL my first two years. You've just got to keep putting your head down and keep working and be ready for that opportunity."
Gaudette was recently named an All-Star for Springfield and although he's honored by the recognition, he will be with the Blues at least through the NHL All-Star break, and if things go well playing here, it may be a permanent ticket to remain in St. Louis, which is the goal.
"It's definitely awesome to get the recognition," Gaudette said. "It's not just me either, it's 'Walks' and 'Pecs,' playing with them. I owe a lot to them as well. It's a good feeling to be named, but I'm up here now and I don't want to go back down. I want to stay up here. Every game, I'm just going to try and keep earning more and more trust from the coaches and hopefully get a little more and more ice time each game and then kind of break through with hopefully what I've been doing down in Springfield translates up here."
Blues defenseman Justin Faulk (72) and Senators forward Adam Gaudette (17) will be teammates on Saturday after being opponents on March 8, 2022 in St. Louis.Gaudette can use Walker as a prime example of that persistence, considering where Walker's been and his journey to keep working for an NHL job.
"At the end of the day, we're playing hockey for a living," Walker said. "If you want to do it and you enjoy it, then you're going to do it as hard as you want and make it as enjoyable as you want. Obviously when you're up and down, it's tough mentally, but that's just kind of the way it is. People have to do it. There has to be guys that go up and down, that's just kind of the way it is. If you look at it a certain way, you can make it a very long season for yourself and a very long career. If you want to make it hard on yourself, then it's going to be a lot harder on you going down and trying to play the way you want to play in order to get called back up.
"I enjoy it. It's still fun for me. It's always going to be fun for me. It's a lot easier to do something when you enjoy it. It's taken me around the world. I've played in the Czech, obviously been here for a while now. The people you meet, the friends you make is something you'll always remember for the rest of your life."
That's why Gaudette is savoring every moment, and putting in the work to give himself the best chance to stick.
"Don't take things for granted," Gaudette said. "As a young guy in the league, I was like, 'This is awesome,' and I thought it was going to last forever type of thing. Being down (in the AHL) for a year and half, I think it was really good for me maturity-wise and mentally. I'm really proud of myself and my wife and my family in just sticking to it and not letting anything get under my skin or getting frustrated. Just trying to get better no matter where I am. I'm still getting paid to play hockey regardless of where I am. What can you be pissed off about? If you put the work in, opportunity is going to present itself. I believe in karma. You get out what you put in and I just put my head down and trying to get better and finally got the opportunity come back up."
Three keys in Blues' 5-2 loss against Capitals
Drew Bannister spoke at length of how the St. Louis Blues deserved what they got from their home loss against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.
Three keys in Blues' 5-2 loss against Capitals (1-18-24) (4:12)And when the interim coach talks of lack of effort, that usually gets a team's attention moving forward, especially the next time those same players take the ice.
Well on this instance, it didn't, and it was much of the same in a 5-2 loss against the Washington Capitals, the third straight loss (0-2-1) for the Blues (21-20-2) at Capital One Arena on Thursday.
And to make matters worse, former Blue T.J. Oshie's seventh NHL hat trick came 26 months after his last one.
Nathan Walker also jumped in on the let's have a night against a former opponent with both goals for the Blues, who will host Washington (22-15-6) on Saturday, but it was of little consolation when many of Walker's teammates didn't follow his lead in limited minutes.
Let's take a look at the three keys:
1. Where were the Blues' top players? -- For the Blues to succeed, they need their top players, and top paid players, to perform up to standards.
Many of them on this night lacked any kind of bite, lacked execution and just looked disinterested throughout.
It's tough to pick out Robert Thomas, who has carried the Blues' offense much of the season, but this was one of those rare nights when their top center iceman was barely noticeable despite playing 25:12. Brayden Schenn could have scored a hat trick in this game with some of the Grade A chances he got and had eight shot attempts but produced nothing in 21:01. Kevin Hayes -- no shots on goal in 12:23; Brandon Saad -- one shot on goal in 12:51; Jordan Kyrou had nothing on two shots despite playing 21:29; Pavel Buchnevich had seven shot attempts (three on goal) in 23:47, including a great chance early in the game but also had no points.
Meanwhile, Washington's top players (Alex Ovechkin, Dylan Strome, Oshie and Max Pacioretty), those four combined for four goals, four assists and 15 shots on goal (25 shot attempts), far outplaying the Blues' top skaters.
2. Special teams nightmare -- Yes, the Blues' power-play has been much better of late, including scoring five goals in three straight games. But on a night in which it could have continued to build and really make a difference, it vanished going 0-for-5, including a four-minute one in the first period.
Not only did they not execute on any of them, but at the very least, the Blues needed to build some momentum, and once again, their failures seemed to build momentum for the opposition.
And for all the talk of how poor the power play has been this season, the penalty kill has stunk as well.
Despite their firepower, the Capitals came into the game 30th in the league in efficiency but scored twice (Oshie both)and for all intents and purposes, Strome's third-period goal 34 seconds in that made it a 4-1 game came four seconds after an interference on Jake Neighbours -- by the way it was a horrible call -- late in the second period, so one can say the Caps scored three times with the man advantage and the Blues were blanked -- again.
3. Anemic forecheck -- For the second straight game and multiple times on the season, the Blues lacked any kind of a persistent forecheck.
Too many one-and-done plays in the offensive, and Washington defensemen were not pressured much throughout the night and neither was former Blues goalie Charlie Lindgren, who had a light night in goal for the Capitals facing only 20 shots.
The Blues had 12 shots in the game at even strength -- 12! That's poor to say the least, and a large portion of it is due to a lack of forecheck, and when you don't forecheck, you don't hit. The Blues had a grand total of seven of them and just made it too each for the Capitals to skate with the puck.
Blues player of the game vs. Capitals: Nathan Walker
There's not much question on most occasions what the St. Louis Blues will get from Nathan Walker.
Blues player of the game vs. Capitals: Nathan Walker (1:52)The forward, who was recently recalled from Springfield of the American Hockey League, will give you all he's got out of every ounce of his 5-foot-9, 187-pound body.
No matter the opponent, no matter the score, no matter the time of game, the 29-year-old will give you every ounce of energy he's got.
He did so, providing the lethargic Blues their only offense in a 5-2 loss against the Washington Capitals, Walker's former team, on Thursday at Capital One Arena.
And Walker did it by going to the areas where many of his teammates won't touch: the front of the net to do so.
He got a piece of Nick Leddy's point shot dragging it off the left side, getting a stick on the puck to tie the game 1-1 at 17:54 of the first period.
Nathan Walker - against his former team - ties the game! #stlblues pic.twitter.com/vcCefE9toU
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) January 19, 2024And when the Blues needed a jolt that didn't do much else the rest of the game because most of Walker's teammates were sleep-skating through this game, he cut a 4-1 deficit to 4-2 at 4:01 when he got a piece of Justin Faulk's shot coming in off the right point by going to the net that was originally given to Faulk.
Justin the knick of time.
Now we need a few more. #stlblues pic.twitter.com/eLaZR33tUU
Walker was a plus-1 in the game in limited action, playing just 9:28 with the two shots on tips, one hit and one blocked shot and more than stood out despite having one costly play that ended up as Washington's second goal when he didn't get a puck in deep from the neutral zone.
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(1-18-24) Blues-Capitals Gameday Lineup
In the seemingly never-ending carousel for coaches in the search for consistency, St. Louis Blues interim coach Drew Bannister has shuffled his lines again ahead of the first of back-to-back matchups, beginning Thursday at 6 p.m. (BSMW, ESPN 101.1-FM) against the Washington Capitals (21-15-6).
Morning skate report vs. Capitals (1-18-24) (3:15)Jordan Kyrou is off the top line and Jake Neighbours is on it again, Brayden Schenn and Kevin Hayes are back together, Adam Gaudette will make his season debut after the American Hockey League's leading goal scorer (24) was recalled on Wednesday in light of Kasperi Kapanen (lower-body injury) going on injured reserve, and Sammy Blais will come out of the lineup for the Blues (21-19-2).
"With 'Kapi' going out, we were probably going to make some changes (and) we liked where 'Kapi' is, but when we got the news yesterday, we thought today we'd try and look at some different options going into the game and again we can always make changes while we're there. We'll see if we can find some chemistry, and with 'Niki' [Nikita Alexandrov] back too, it gives us an extra center."
A line with Robert Thomas and Pavel Bucnhevich gives the Blues a bonafide top line, but it's been an ongoing process of finding secondary scoring.
So Kyrou, who has been a regular with Thomas and Buchnevich until Bannister pulled him off it on Monday against the Philadelphia Flyers, will try and help fuel a line with Schenn and Hayes, who will alternate who's in the middle and who's on the wing.
"We kind of just played whoever was good in the dot (in the past), whoever was kind of feeling it and whoever was playing down low," Schenn said. "We're both capable of playing both. This is a chance for us to get back. I thought we played well together games ago and then add 'Rouzy.' The three of us can make some plays and work together."
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Bannister also tried putting the band back together the past couple games, but he's, at least at the outset, going to run back something that worked on the blue line as well.
The Blues are splitting up Torey Krug and Justin Faulk and putting Krug back with Matthew Kessel.
When Faulk sustained a lower-body injury Dec. 29 against the Colorado Avalanche, the Krug-Kessel pairing was solid for five games.
Krug had three assists and was a minus-1, while Kessel was even, but in the two games since, Krug has no points and was a minus-6.
"They played well together while they were there," Bannister said. "Obviously we started there and we kind of went back to Faulk and Krug and we just felt as a team, it's probably best right now to go back to that pairing and have them play together and have Faulker and 'Perun' play together."
Faulk will be paired with Scott Perunovich, making veteran Marco Scandella a healthy scratch for the third game in a row.
"They're both moving pucks and 'Faulker,' he defends really well," Bannister said. "He uses his body really well. For 'Perun,' that's certainly not his strong point. He's got to defend with his feet, he's got to defend with his stick, make sure he's on the right side. He's going to help out on our retrievals to get pucks back, but they both transport pucks really well and that's something that we're looking for our defense to move pucks to our forwards as quickly as we can to transition so we can get to the offensive zone quick and they do that well."
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Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin, who is chasing Wayne Gretzky's all-time record for goals, is a game-time decision tonight.
Ovechkin, who has 830 goals and is 64 away from tying Gretzky and 65 away from breaking the record, has missed the past three games with a lower-body injury.
Now it's up to the Blues, at least for the next two games, to potentially keep 'Ovi' off the goal-scoring sheet.
Ovechkin has killed the Blues in his career with 35 points, including 19 goals, in 24 career games.
"Try your best, right," Schenn said. "Obviously one of the all-time greats, lethal shot. It's funny, it's Game (43). Other than the highlights, you don't really see their team a whole lot. It's an opportunity. It's one of those challenges where you look forward to playing one of the legends in the game and obviously towards the end of his career, but he still has a lot left in the tank. He's going to play hard and he's obviously going to do everything he can to score goals. You try and stop him."
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The Blues, with 44 points, have seven games remaining before they hit the All-Star break, with 10 days off between games and a chance to see where they put themselves when February rolls around.
After the two games against the Capitals, including the rematch Saturday at Enterprise Center, the Blues then embark on a three-game trip in four days to Calgary, Vancouver and Seattle, then come home to close out the pre-break slate against Los Angeles and Columbus.
"I think we've got to maximize what we have in front of us as far as winning hockey games," Bannister said. "Going into the break, we have seven games. We have to be able to maximize those seven games, three at home and four on the road. This is an important stretch for us to make sure going into the break, we're feeling good about ourselves and our game. When we come out of the break, we want to be playing good hockey."
One of the areas Bannister stressed is, "we have to become a better forechecking team. That's kind of our focus right now in our team game is becoming a better forechecking team that will hopefully create more offense for us and playing in the offensive zone lessens the time you have to defend."
Bannister offered up an interesting thought when asked why the forecheck has been so inconsistent.
"I think in general for a lot of teams and analytics, the rush game has been something that people really have pushed on, possession," he said. "I think we're No. 1 in the league in chances for off the rush. But if you look at the top teams, a lot of them aren't good rush teams, they're good forechecking teams and that leads to offense for them, that leads to them playing below the tops of the circles and in turn, that makes them a better defensive team because they're playing less time in their zone and they're able to three-quarter ice teams and get back up on the forecheck. It's more predictable, and I think we have to have a happy medium here where we become a better forechecking team. It might mean that we have to give up some offense on the controlled entries, which we're going to be fine with if it helps us win games."
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The Blues' projected lineup:
Pavel Buchnevich-Robert Thomas-Jake Neighbours
Kevin Hayes-Brayden Schenn-Jordan Kyrou
Brandon Saad-Oskar Sundqvist-Adam Gaudette
Nathan Walker-Nikita Alexandrov-Alexey Toropchenko
Nick Leddy-Colton Parayko
Torey Krug-Matthew Kessel
Scott Perunovich-Justin Faulk
Jordan Binnington will start in goal; Joel Hofer will be the backup.
The healthy scratches include Marco Scandella and Sammy Blais. Kasperi Kapanen (lower body) is out.
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The Capitals' projected lineup:
Alex Ovechkin-Evgeny Kuznetsov-Anthony Mantha
Max Pacioretty-Dylan Strome-T.J. Oshie
Aliaksei Protas-Connor McMichael-Tom Wilson
Beck Malenstyn-Nic Dowd-Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Martin Fehervary-John Carlson
Joel Edmundson-Ethan Bear
Alexander Alexeyev-Nick Jensen
Charlie Lindgren will start in goal; Darcy Kuemper will be the backup.
Healthy scratches could include Hendrix Lapierre, Matthew Phillips and Trevor van Riemsdyk. Sonny Milano (upper body) and Rasmus Sandin (upper body) are out. Ovechkin is a game-time decision; Malenstyn is questionable (personal) and former Blue Edmundson (undisclosed injury) is also questionable.
Player to watch vs. Capitals: Jake Neighbours
My St. Louis Blues player to watch against the Washington Capitals on Thursday is forward Jake Neighbours.
Player to watch vs. Capitals: Jake Neighbours (1:51)It's no secret that Neighbours had success playing on the top line with Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich in the past, and the 21-year-old will get that opportunity again tonight against the Capitals.
When Neighbours was put on the Thomas line Nov. 26 against the Chicago Blackhawks, he started off with a bang with two goals, and had five goals in eight games through Dec. 9 and also had 26 shots on goal, averaging 3.25 per game.
In the 14 games since, Neighbours has lit the lamp just three times and had 28 shots on goal, good for an average of two per game but eight of those came in one Jan. 3 against Vancouver.
With interim coach Drew Bannister looking for balance, it will be an opportunity for Neighbours to provide the net front presence playing with Thomas and Buchnevich will require in his first career game against the Capitals and should give him a boost in not only opportunities but minutes as well.
Kapanen placed on IR with lower-body injury, to be re-evaluated in four weeks
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- The St. Louis Blues will be without Kasperi Kapanen for the near future when the forward was placed on injured-reserve with a lower-body injury and will be re-evaluated in four weeks.
Kapanen blocked a shot by Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler with 7:25 remaining of a 4-2 loss on Monday; he was crouched down in pain for a bit before gingerly making his way to the bench not putting any weight on his left leg but finished the game.
Blues forward Kasperi Kapanen (42) will miss at least the next seven games with a lower-body injury sustained while blocking a shot Monday against Philadelphia."Lower-body injury, probably week to week, which will push him, because we have the break, that will push him until after the [All-Star] break," Blues interim coach Drew Bannister said. "I don't foresee any miracle happening. There's always a possibility there, but probably more or less he'll be ready for us after the break.
"It was late in the game, but certainly to be able to finish that off. Usually a play like that where the puck hit him, a lot of times it bothers you more once you take the boot off compared to when you have it on. That's when it usually arises."
Kapanen has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 42 games this season, and at the earliest, would be able to return out of the break against the Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 10.
"He's been playing great as of late blocking shots and playing hard, playing with speed," Blues captain Brayden Schenn said of Kapanen. "It's just one of those things where he's sacrificing his body and got an unlucky bounce."
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The Blues have recalled forward Adam Gaudette from Springfield of the American Hockey League and he will be in the lineup on Thursday against the Washington Capitals.
Gaudette leads the AHL with 24 goals and is third with 36 points, and Bannister, prior to joining the Blues on Dec. 13, coached him in Springfield.
"He shoots the puck. He likes to shoot it, he likes to score," Bannister said. "He's obviously had a lot of success when I was there and has continued that success. I think he's first in the league in goal totals and points for league overall. He's really competitive, strong on his stick, battles for pucks, but he's not going to be shy to shoot the puck, that's for sure.
"There's not a lot of give-and-go with him. Once you give it to him, just get to the net because if it's not in the back of the net, there's usually going to be a rebound. He's had a lot of success down there and now he gets the chance to be rewarded by coming up here and getting in games and then hopefully he can have the same success up here as he had down there."
Adam Gaudette, who will make his Blues debut Thursday against the Washington Capitals, was recalled from Springfield on Wednesday. The forward leads the American Hockey League with 24 goals.A lot of Gaudette's success came playing on a line with Nathan Walker and Matthew Peca.
"He's definitely playing some good hockey," Walker said of Gaudette. "I'm happy for him to be here as well. It just kind of happened from Day 1. He's a great shooter obviously and a good passer. I just tried to do my best to get in on the forecheck and get him the puck and try to get open and go to the net."
The Blues ran the following lines in practice today ahead of their game against the Capitals:
Pavel Buchnevich-Robert Thomas-Jake Neighbours
Kevin Hayes-Brayden Schenn-Jordan Kyrou
Brandon Saad-Nathan Walker-Oskar Sundqvist
Alexey Toropchenko-Nikita Alexandrov-Sammy Blais
Nick Leddy-Colton Parayko
Torey Krug-Matthew Kessel
Scott Perunovich-Justin Faulk
Jordan Binnington
Joel Hofer
Bannister said that Gaudette, the 2018 Hobey Baker Award winner who last played in the NHL with the Ottawa Senators in 2021-22, would play in the top nine.
"I believe he'll play tomorrow. ... I think he's definitely going to be in our top nine," Bannister said. "I don't think a player like him can sit on our fourth line and expect him to have success. We'll have to find a role for him within the top nine forwards that fits. Being a right shot helps. We'll see when we get there tomorrow."