Vladimir Tarasenko ready to boost Blues repeat bid

The St. Louis Blues will be the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference playoffs, and they’re set to get a healthy Vladimir Tarasenko.

After an improbable run to the Stanley Cup last year, the St. Louis Blues will be the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference when the NHL playoffs start. On the “We Went Blues” podcast Thursday, head coach Craig Berube told Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic that winger Vladimir Tarasenko is ready to go when play resumes.

Tarasenko has been out since Oct. 24 with a left shoulder injury. After surgery five days later, he was expected to miss five months. In 10 games, he posted 10 points (three goals and seven assists). He seemed to be nearing a return to action when the NHL season was shut down due to coronavirus, and it’s now well past the five month timetable.

“He’s good,” Berube said. “Before we stopped, he was ready to come back the next week and play, so, he did a great job of getting himself back.

“He did a great job with his rehab, along with the training staff, and he kept himself in great shape. He actually came back in better shape than he came to camp (in September) … He’s been on the ice and doing things right now, so he’s ready to go.”

The Blues not only posted the highest point total in the West during the shortened regular season (94), they were in the top half of the league in scoring (223 goals, 3.14 per game). Now they’re set to add Tarasenko, who scored at least 33 goals and led the team in goals for five straight seasons prior to this one. He was also key cog in last year’s Stanley Cup run, with 17 points (11 goals).

Even with the randomness of the NHL playoffs and the new format for this year, the Blues weren’t exactly going to be on upset alert early. But getting someone the caliber of Tarasenko back is the kind of thing that can be a push over the top in the quest to repeat.