With the NHL trade deadline come and gone, the focus turns to the playoffs. Unfortunately for these five teams, there won’t be any playoffs.
Playoff hockey is everyone’s favorite time of year. Every game is important; every round adds more and more pressure. Great rivalries are born on this chase for the greatest trophy in sports, the Stanley Cup.
But these bubble teams will end the season on the outside looking in by the conclusion of this year’s playoff race.
5. St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues have made the playoffs every year since 2011. This year, that streak will come to an end. The Blues simply are not good enough to make it through the Central Division. The Winnipeg Jets are strong, the Nashville Predators are a Stanley Cup favorite and the Minnesota Wild are having a good season. The Blues would have to make it into the playoffs as Wild Card; they won’t catch the teams in front of them. St. Louis would have to jump the Calgary Flames and Anaheim Ducks while holding off the charging Colorado Avalanche.
The Blues made one of the most surprising moves of the NHL trade deadline by trading center Paul Stastny to one of their division rivals, the Jets. They received a good return, but selling one of your most important players is not the strategy of a team going for the playoffs. If the Blues were buyers at the deadline and added a few pieces, they could have completely changed their outlook.
The other factor dragging down the Blues is goaltender Jake Allen. When Allen is on his game, he is one of the best in the business. The only problem is when he is off his game, he is very bad. In seasons past, the Blues have had to rely heavily on their backups because of Allen’s struggles. In the last two months, Allen has only one win. Combining inconsistent goaltending, no additions at the deadline and a tough Central division adds up to the Blues missing the playoffs for the first time in seven years.