St. Louis Blues: 5 Players Who Must Step Up in 2013-14

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5. Jay Bouwmeester

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Bouwmeester, whom the Blues acquired at the trade deadline last season, was pretty effective over his first 14 games in a Blues uniform, tallying seven points and recording a plus-minus of positive five. It's important that the 29-year-old Bouwmeester keeps up the good work during 2013-14. He'll undoubtedly provide a great impact to the offensive attack, and it would be nice if he was at least decent as a defender. Though many consider it an overrated stat, it's worth noting that he hasn't had a positive plus-minus since 2006-07.

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4. Jaden Schwartz

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After arriving late in the 2011-12 season, Schwartz made his full-season debut last year, and he had a decent showing. Schwartz finished strong, scoring three goals in the season's final four games. This year, though, he'll need to be consistently good and will have plenty of talented players breathing down his back if he doesn't produce.

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3. Brian Elliott

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Elliott will go into the season as Jarsolav Halak's backup, but no one who has watched the Blues over the past two seasons should expect him to stay in that position for very long. Elliott has taken away Halak's job in each of the past two years, and for the most part he has performed very well. The 28-year-old went 23-10 with a 1.56 GAA while making his first All-Star appearance in 2011-12. Last year, he struggled initially, but ended up finishing strong with a 14-8 record. While everyone is hoping for a bounce-back season from Halak, it really is more important to make sure that Elliott is on his game when Halak inevitably goes down or has a cold streak. His major issues have come when he has gone a long time without playing, so expect the Blues to consistently mix him in and keep him fresh during 2013-14.

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2. Derek Roy

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Roy was the Blues' most high-profile acquisition during the offseason, and there will be high, if not unrealistic, expectations thrown onto him this year. The 30-year-old had 28 points in a 2012-13 season split between the Dallas Stars and Vancouver Canucks, and he's proven before that he can be an effective scoring option. His numbers have dropped off in recent years, though, so he needs to bounce back this year.

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1. Vladimir Tarasenko

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Tarasenko ended up being perhaps the Blues' biggest disappointment of 2012-13. He started off on fire, but then slumped and missed a large chunk of the season with a concussion. It culminated in him being a healthy scratch for several postseason games, and he was a non-factor in the games which he took part in. This year, Tarasenko needs to live up to his billing as an elite goal scorer, and a big part of the team's offensive fortune may lay on his back.