The St. Louis Blues begin the Bannister era

A new age is beginning in the Gateway to the West.

On Wednesday morning, the St. Louis Blues fired head coach Craig Berube after the team’s 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings, calling up Drew Bannister to be the interim coach.

While the Blues are competing for a playoff spot with a 13-14-1 record, mediocrity over the past few seasons has led management to make the change.

Berube was named head coach in the middle of the 2018-19 season, helping lead St. Louis to the franchise’s first Stanley Cup. However, the team has not made it beyond the second round since, missing the playoffs entirely last season.

Berube ends his tenure as the Blues’ coach with a 206-132-44 record. He had previously signed a three-year contract that would last through the 2024-25 season.

In his place comes Bannister, who was the head coach of the Blues’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. In over two seasons with the Thunderbirds, Bannister’s teams went 93-58-19, making it to the Calder Cup Finals in 2022.

On Wednesday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli says there is an opportunity for the new guy behind the bench in St. Louis.

Frank Seravalli: I think the door is wide open for Drew Bannister to come in and do a nice job, and earn the [full-time] position. He’s a guy that has seen lots of different levels of hockey, and is typically known as someone who is well prepared. I think there’s some thought of “Hey, as wonky as this season has been, and inconsistent at times, maybe there’s a door open enough for us to sneak into the playoffs.”

You can watch the full segment, and entire episode here…