Legendary St. Louis blues artist Albert King famously sang, "If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all." That is probably how St. Louis Blues fans are feeling after a free-agency period that saw them lose captain David Backes, goalie Brian Elliott and prime playoff producer Troy Brouwer.
Of course, this was the follow-up to the Blues losing to the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference finals, coming up just short of expectations in the playoffs after another terrific regular season. If fans felt like St. Louis was right on the doorstep of a long-awaited Stanley Cup finals appearance and simply needed to add a few more pieces to get over the hump, they were greeted with a different reality on July 1, when their captain signed a long-term contract with the Boston Bruins.
However, Blues fans should be singing a much happier tune.
They avoided a potentially disastrous long-term contract with Backes, signed a solid backup goalie, will reportedly get Vladimir Sobotka back from the KHL and have a young core that is ready to contend for a Stanley Cup in 2016-17.