Matthew DeFranks

4 weeks ago | stltoday.com | Matthew DeFranks

Alexander Steen is about halfway there. Eleven months ago, the Blues unveiled a succession plan in their front office that would make Steen the special assistant to general manager Doug Armstrong for two years and then push him into the GM role in 2026 once Armstrong adopts president of hockey operations as his sole position. In the year that has followed, Steen has had a front seat to a lot. There were offer sheets that poached Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway from Edmonton.

1 month ago | stltoday.com | Matthew DeFranks

Pressure mounts on Winnipeg as Blues flip the playoff momentum When the Blues needed more offense, their defensemen stepped up. The Blues’ blue liners were major catalysts for St. Louis as it tied its first-round playoff series with Winnipeg by winning Games 3 and 4 on home ice. In Sunday’s 5-1 win in Game 4, they scored twice (Tyler Tucker and Justin Faulk), and Colton Parayko’s point shot was deflected by Jake Neighbours in front.

1 month ago | stltoday.com | Matthew DeFranks |Jeff Gordon |Tom Timmermann

Pressure mounts on Winnipeg as Blues flip the playoff momentum Post-Dispatch Blues beat reporter Matthew DeFranks and sportswriter Tom Timmermann joined columnist Jeff Gordon to discuss the stunning turn of events in the playoff series against Winnipeg. --------

1 month ago | stltoday.com | Matthew DeFranks

Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify The calendar read late April, but the feeling might as well have transported the Blues back to mid-February. Last week, the Blues returned to St. Louis after losing the opening two games of their first-round Stanley Cup playoffs series in Winnipeg. They burned through two of the three losses they could manage before elimination and faced the reality of having to win four of the next five games against the league’s best team.

1 month ago | stltoday.com | Matthew DeFranks

Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify What a difference one day makes. During Blues practice on Saturday afternoon, Mathieu Joseph appeared set to reenter the lineup, skating on the third line where Alexandre Texier was in Game 3. But when Game 4 began on Sunday afternoon, it was Texier who remained in and Joseph who was a healthy scratch for the third straight game of the series. Call it a Tex two-step.