In the 2023-24 season, Robert Thomas established himself as the St. Louis Blues’ best player, but does he receive the recognition he deserves?
Jacob Stoller of The Hockey News recently wrote an article detailing the five most underappreciated forwards in the NHL. Thomas was one of the five listed and his spot on that list is justified.
ICYMI: Who Are The NHL’s Most Underappreciated Players?
With the help of an NHL asst coach, a scout, some players, data & eye test observations — I’ll be examining that very question in a 3 part series for @TheHockeyNews
Part 1: Forwards 📺📝⤵️https://t.co/xQH9yUpftJ
— Jacob Stoller (@JLStoller) August 18, 2024
Thomas turned 25 earlier this summer after he led the charge offensively for St. Louis, racking up a team and career-high 86 points in his sixth NHL season. He was Mr. Consistency for the entire year. His longest stretch of games without recording a point was four.
The Aurora, Ontario native had 19 more points than second on the team — Jordan Kyrou had 67 — and was the only forward to average 20 or more minutes a night (20:58 TOI/GP). Also, he had the best plus/minus rating amongst forwards (plus-9) and was one of only two forwards to have a plus rating last year.
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Additionally, as per Natural Stat Strick, Thomas had the highest GF% (58.82) out of all St. Louis players. Second was Jordan Kyrou at 53.85%.
This past year was Robert’s first season playing under his new eight-year $65 million ($8.13 million cap hit) contract and he certainly showed not just the fans in St. Louis but the rest of the league why he deserved to get paid the big bucks.
Stanley Cup Champion and St. Louis native, Matthew Tkachuk, said on the Cam & Strick podcast before the start of last season, “Nobody sees the ice like him. He’s the guy now (in St. Louis) and he’s going to have a big year,” said Tkachuk.
Matthew was on to something. Thomas has quickly filled the void of Ryan O’Reilly’s departure from the team two years ago as the team’s number one centerman.
Related: Where Would Robert Thomas Rank in a 2017 Re-Draft?
However, despite his amazing year, there wasn’t much chatter surrounding his name and the season he had. The only major recognition he received was attending the 2024 All-Star Game in Toronto.
Stoller had this to say on the St. Louis Blues all-star:
“Since the 2021-2022 season, Thomas has completed the most 5-on-5 high-danger passes per 60 minutes (3.85) of any skater who played at least 600 minutes, according to allthreezones.com. Thomas also recorded the 10th-most 5-on-5 primary assists per 60 minutes (1.12) through that span. His vision is just one component of his dynamic skillset, though. The six-foot, 218-pound center is a matchup nightmare.”
Hockey fans across the world will start to recognize Thomas’ talents once the Blues get themselves back into the playoffs. And No. 18 will be the commander leading their charge in 2024-25.
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