ST. LOUIS \u2014 Robert Thomas is the newest captain of the St. Louis Blues.<\/p>\n
The team announced on Wednesday that it\u2019s giving the \u201cC\u201d to the 27-year-old center, who was drafted No. 20 in 2017 and will be entering his ninth season in 2026-27. Thomas succeeds Brayden Schenn and is the 25th captain in team history.<\/p>\n
The Blues also announced that forwards Jake Neighbours and Dylan Holloway and defensemen Colton Parayko and Philip Broberg will be alternate captains.<\/p>\n
Thomas was a member of the 2019 Stanley Cup team. He assisted on Pat Maroon\u2019s double-overtime goal in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinal against the Dallas Stars, pushing the team into the conference final.<\/p>\n
Thomas has played 530 regular-season games, producing 132 goals, 328 assists (fifth in franchise history) and 460 points (tied for 10th). He\u2019s\u00a0played 52 playoff games, posting six goals and 26 points.<\/p>\n
He has five seasons left on the eight-year, $65 million contract ($8.125 million average annual value) he signed in July 2022.<\/p>\n
After Schenn was traded to the New York Islanders in March, leaving the Blues captaincy unfilled, Thomas was considered a top candidate.<\/p>\n
The native of Aurora, Ontario, was the subject of trade rumors<\/a> himself last season, but told The Athletic in July that after several meetings<\/a> with new general manager Alexander Steen this summer, he felt \u201clike a big part of leadership in trying to build something special here.\u201d<\/p>\n He did not shy away from the idea of being asked to wear the \u201cC.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been very fortunate to be a captain before and love taking on that responsibility,\u201d Thomas told The Athletic at the time. \u201cI have a lot of confidence in my ability as a player and who I am as a person and feel like I\u2019d be a great leader. Whether it\u2019s (captain) or not, I\u2019ll continue to elevate myself and take over a bigger voice.\u201d<\/p>\n Parayko was named an alternate captain in December 2020, and Neighbours<\/a> and Broberg were both tapped for the role at the end of the 2025-26 season. This will be the first time Holloway has been given this sort of leadership designation.<\/p>\n The Blues will hold a news conference on Thursday with Steen, coach Jim Montgomery and Thomas.<\/p>\n Did the Blues make the right choice?<\/p>\n Yes.<\/p>\n If the Blues and Thomas were recommitting to each other following last season\u2019s trade reports, putting the \u201cC\u201d on him was the right move.<\/p>\n There\u2019s never been any question about the 2024 All-Star\u2019s talent, but there has been some concern over the years about his leadership. That waned after Schenn departed and Thomas was counted on to be a bigger voice of the team, which he was.<\/p>\n Some fans may say Parayko would\u2019ve been a good choice, and they\u2019re not wrong. He\u2019s played the third-most regular-season games in franchise history (800) and is respected in the locker room. But the soft-spoken defenseman is 33 and would\u2019ve been traded to the Buffalo Sabres last season if he had agreed to waive his no-trade clause. His future with the organization is a bit uncertain.<\/p>\n Neighbours, meanwhile, has been viewed as captain material for a while and could get that opportunity one day.<\/p>\n What does it say about the Blues\u2019 future?<\/p>\n On the surface, naming the best player on your roster the captain doesn\u2019t indicate much.<\/p>\n But by keeping Thomas this summer and now giving him the \u201cC,\u201d the Blues are committing to being a contender sooner rather than later. He was vocal in saying the team was further along on its path to contention than many believed, and if he\u2019s on board with management after discussions this summer, they must share the same vision.<\/p>\n However, that doesn\u2019t mean Steen is going to rush things.<\/p>\n As I wrote in my 10 bold predictions<\/a> this week, the Blues\u2019 core is made up of skilled players in their early 20s who may not be ready to compete for a top-three spot in the Central Division this season. But let\u2019s not forget Thomas is just 27 and under contract on a team-friendly deal for the next five seasons, so he\u2019ll still be around when they\u2019re ready.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know that the Blues were truly going to move Thomas last season. Former GM Doug Armstrong said he had to explore all of his options, and that was understandable, even with Thomas. But patience prevailed, communication was restored, and now the club has a new\/old face of the franchise<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ST. LOUIS \u2014 Robert Thomas is the newest captain of the St. Louis Blues. 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