Pavel Buchnevich is staring at a make-or-break stretch with the St. Louis Blues, and the message around him is plain: this is the time to turn it around.
After years of waiting for the player fans remember from his first season in St. Louis, the Blues winger has been trending the wrong way since his move out of New York and that huge opening campaign with the Blue Note on his chest. Now, with the roster shifting around him, he may be getting one last clean shot to rediscover that form.
The biggest change is the support system. Buchnevich could land on a second line that looks very different next season, and that might be exactly what he needs.
Mason McTavish and Connor McMichael are set to compete for the second-center job, with the loser sliding to the wing on that line. Buchnevich would likely occupy the other wing on the right side, though nothing is guaranteed.
Jake Neighbours could also make the spot his own if he repeats the kind of success he had last season before getting hurt.
That group would be asked to do important work behind the Blues’ top line of Robert Thomas, Jimmy Snuggerud, and Dylan Holloway, which is expected to be strong again. If the second unit is going to hold up, it needs Buchnevich to be part of the answer.
And that’s where the pressure comes in. Another underwhelming year could put him squarely on the trade block, with Thomas, Colton Parayko, and Jordan Binnington potentially standing as the last pieces of the old core. The runway is getting shorter.
The Blues are also moving toward a younger group, and that only raises the stakes for Buchnevich. Justin Carbonneau and Dmitri Buchelnikov are climbing through the farm system, and their NHL arrival is described as imminent. If Buchnevich can’t get back to the level he reached in 2021-22, he risks becoming a barrier to what comes next.
For Buchnevich, the equation is simple now: improve in 2026-27, or make the trade deadline a very interesting time.
In Other News...
Blues MVP Debate Is No Longer Just About Robert Thomas
Robert Thomas has long been the obvious answer whenever the Blues most valuable player conversation comes up, and for good reason. He has been the sort of steady center around whom the roster has been built, but the outlook for 2026-27 suggests the debate could get a little more interesting if St. Louis younger core keeps taking shape the way the organization hopes.
Jimmy Snuggerud is expected to skate with Thomas and get first-line minutes, Joel Hofer is lined up to take over in goal, and Philip Broberg is moving into a bigger role on the blue line. Thomas still looks like a strong MVP candidate, but the point is no longer whether he matters most. It is whether the next wave of Blues talent can make a real case to share, or even steal, that spotlight. [Read more 🡒]