Cam Fowler is the oldest player on the Blues roster this season, and he will turn 35 years old in December. His role shrunk last season from the top pair, No. 1 power play quarterback in 2024-25 to a bottom pair, no power play defenseman in 2025-26. As the Bleus transitioned more responsibility to Broberg and Mailloux later in the season, Fowler’s minutes withered away.
Jordan Binnington and Colton Parayko are both 33 years old, and Parayko’s role will still be large in St. Louis as a shutdown defenseman and key penalty killer. Binnington enters the season as Hofer’s backup, but should still start at least one-third of the 84 games this season.
Coaching a young team might require different skills from a coach. There’s more teaching during practice. There’s more patience with mistakes. There’s more trust to be gained. There’s maybe more ice time to help mold the future.
Montgomery has known how young this Blues team will be.
It’s part of why he wanted to hire Greg Cronin as an assistant coach. While his tenure as Anaheim head coach ended after just two seasons, Cronin coached a rebuilding Ducks squad that was the 10th-youngest team one season, and the fifth one the next year. Cronin also has a history with the U.S. Men’s National Team Development Program and coaching in college.
Montgomery used to coach in college, but is now almost a decade removed from his time at Denver. His teams in Dallas were the 12th and second oldest in the NHL. Both years as an assistant in St. Louis featured teams in the top 11 of age. And the record-breaking 2022-23 Bruins? They were the fifth-oldest team in the league.