(Pavel Buchnevich, Nathan Walker and Robby Fabbri all played center at some point last season.)
At his best, McTavish is a highly skilled forward that can get inside towards the net. The offensive side of his game is evident despite poor skating (zero speed bursts above 22 mph last season), and he is listed at 6-1 and 219 pounds.
“Putting a magnifying glass on what I need, and just really attacking all those things,” McTavish said. “Becoming a better skater, being more explosive, working with new people, nutrition and stuff like that. Those things that everybody does, and you just try to do them as hard as you can, and well as you can.”
Blues president of hockey operations Doug Armstrong and general manager Alexander Steen think that McTavish has more development in him because he’s only 23 years old. For context, Dylan Holloway was 22 and Philip Broberg was 23 when they arrived in St. Louis two years ago.
“When you step in at such a young age, it’s interesting,” McTavish said. “But I feel like every year, no matter how old you are, there’s always areas you can get better at. I think you really see it when players are younger, but I think there’s always places players can improve on.”
McTavish fits into the group of players that the Blues are trying to build around.
That starts with the 27-year-old Robert Thomas and reaches down to 21-year-old Dalibor Dvorsky, with Philip Broberg (25), Connor McMichael (25), Jonatan Berggren (25), Dylan Holloway (24), Jake Neighbours (24), Logan Mailloux (23), Jack Finley (23), Jimmy Snuggerud (22), Otto Stenberg (21) and Theo Lindstein (21) in between.
“They’re building a fast and physical brand,” McTavish said. “I personally bring a lot of competitiveness, and hunger to win games. I think I’d say more of a skilled forward, likes to take the puck to the net. I think my hockey sense is the best thing about my game, just knowing where people are and reads to make, especially in the offensive zone. …