The Blues' biggest roster weakness entering the 2026-27 season is on the blue line

The St. Louis Blues are, very likely, finished for the offseason. There are no pressing contracts to be signed, the draft is over, a couple of trades were made, and free agents signed--it's time for front office executives to retire to the cottage for the remainder of the summer. The roster we see now will, in all likelihood, be the lineup on opening night of the 2026-27 season.

Unfortunately, there's a pretty glaring weakness.

Who's going to play on the top pair?

The Blues have a decent forward core in place, where healthy seasons from Dylan Holloway and Robert Thomas and continued growth from Jimmy Snuggerud, Mason McTavish and Connor McMichael should give the top nine a boost. The problem, then, is the defense: namely, who can handle the workload next to Philip Broberg.

Broberg is, without question, the Blues' No. 1 defenseman; he may not have the gaudy point totals, but an increased role on the power play and continued development (he's only 25 years old, after all) should cement him there. Signed long term on a reasonable $8-million AAV contract, that spot is set. After that, things get murky.

Cam Fowler was a revelation when he joined the Blues from the Anaheim Ducks and was quickly inked to an extension a year before his contract was up. Then, last season, he crashed back to Earth: he put up a respectable 30 points, but was a minus-11 and had mediocre underlying numbers. There's always a chance he bounces back, but at 34 years old, that might be asking too much--plus, he's a left shot like Broberg, and sometimes coaches get hung up on handedness with regard to defensive pairs.

The Blues' right-handed options aren't particularly inspiring, either: Logan Mailloux was excellent down the stretch and could grow into the role, but that's asking a lot of the 23-year-old. Brandon Carlo lacks the dynamic qualities you'd want in a top-pair defender, and Colton Parayko's in the twilight of his career and can't be consistently counted on in those situations. It's a real conundrum.

The best option

For a team in transition like the Blues are, you've got to give young players opportunities and see if they can run with it. While Fowler may be the choice to start the season based on experience, this is a chance for Mailloux to show that last season's surge was no mirage--that he can be a top-pair (or at least top-four) defender in the NHL.

The Blues have a weak defense group at the moment, and there don't appear to be any options available aside from internal improvement. They'd better hope someone steps up, or Broberg's going to be getting more minutes than anyone in the league--and that's not a risk a team should take.

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This article was originally published on bleedinblue.com as The Blues' biggest roster weakness entering the 2026-27 season is on the blue line .