Nearly three years after the St. Louis Blues drafted Jimmy Snuggerud, the right winger is headed to the NHL.
Snuggerud, 20, is expected to sign an entry-level contract and will report to the team, according to a source close to the player.
It’s not yet known if Snuggerud will be in the lineup against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday afternoon. It would seem doubtful since the Blues have two days off after the game, which would provide him with a couple of practices before a three-game homestand begins Tuesday.
Snuggerud’s three-year career at the University of Minnesota ended Thursday night with a 5-4 loss to the University of Massachusetts in an NCAA regional final in Fargo, N.D. He had two goals in the game, finishing his junior year with 24 goals and 51 points in 40 games.
Thursday, while Snuggerud’s career came to a close, the Blues won their eighth straight game, beating the Nashville Predators 3-2. They have 85 points and sit in the No. 2 wild-card spot in the Western Conference, five points ahead of the Vancouver Canucks (two games in hand) and six ahead of the Calgary Flames (three games in hand).
The Blues have eight games remaining in the regular season and still have a chance to catch the Minnesota Wild for the No. 1 wild-card spot.
It remains to be seen how many of those games Snuggerud will be suited up for. Once he signs the contract, the first year of the deal will be “burned,” which means the 2025-26 season will be the second year of the deal. He does not need to play in a game for the year to be burned.
Snuggerud was the Blues’ first-round pick (No. 23) in 2022. In 119 games with the Gophers, he had 66 goals and 135 points.
He is a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, given annually to college hockey’s best player. The award will be presented at the NCAA Frozen Four on April 11 in St. Louis.
What does this mean for Blues?
This is big news, regardless of the impact it has for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. If Snuggerud had decided to return to the Gopher for his senior season, there’s a chance he may never have joined the Blues. The deadline to sign him would have been Aug. 15, 2026, and if there was no guarantee that he’d ever come, it’s likely the team would have begun shopping his rights in a trade. Now none of that is a concern.
Will he play for the team this season?
When a college player signs with his NHL team, there’s often a handshake agreement to put him in the lineup. The Blues offered Snuggerud that chance at the end of the 2023-24 season, but he returned to Minnesota. It seems likely that the same opportunity has been offered, but with the Blues’ playoff hopes hanging in the balance, perhaps there’s an understanding that playing time will be a game-by-game decision.
Where does he fit in the lineup?
The immediate reaction to this question is, “Who would come out of the lineup?” A month ago, that would have sounded absurd, but since the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Blues are 14-2-2 and have the league’s highest-scoring offense (4 goals per game). Pavel Buchnevich may return Saturday against Colorado, meaning Zack Bolduc could return to the third line. Does Snuggerud replace Mathieu Joseph? Alexandre Texier? It’s a tough call.
(Photo: Adam Ihse / Getty Images)