The St. Louis Blues finally settled on their opening night roster for the 2026-27 season, but I am not exactly celebrating. According to NHL.com, the team starts the regular season this Friday, Oct. 2, against Dallas. It should be a big night. Instead, it feels like a scramble. The roster is full of new names from summer trades and free agency, but the depth is looking shaky.
A blue line in crisis
The defense is where things get scary. The Blues are heading into October with two massive holes on the injured reserve. Logan Mailloux and Tyler Tucker will both miss the start of the season due to injuries. You cannot lose that much stability right out of the gate. To fix the gap, the team claimed defenseman Justin Barron off waivers from Nashville. They also brought up 2024 first-round pick Adam Jiricek. It is a lot of pressure on young legs. Bringing in veteran Brandon Carlo via the summer moves helps, but the loss of Mailloux hurts.
New faces and old trades
The forward group looks like a different team entirely. The summer brought in Mason McTavish and Connor McMichael to help the offense. We also see Ross Johnston and Dillon Dube on the list. Dube is a veteran with over 300 NHL games under his belt. Last year, he assisted the Springfield Thunderbirds in advancing to the division finals within the Calder Cup Playoffs. It is also interesting to see Zach Dean making the club for the first time. The 2023 trade involving Ivan Barbashev’s move to the Vegas Golden Knights included him as a participant. I still have mixed feelings about that trade, but Dean is officially here.
The path to October 2
The roster is set, but the stability is not. The Blues have 14 forwards and 7 defensemen ready for puck drop. Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer will handle duties in net. While the addition of players like McTavish and McMichael aims to bolster the attack, the injury list is too long to ignore. The team will have to rely on the likes of Philip Broberg and Cam Fowler to steady a group that is missing key pieces.
