ST. LOUIS \u2014 It\u2019s no secret that Steve Ott wants to be an NHL head coach in the not-too-distant future.<\/p>\n
The longtime St. Louis Blues assistant coach said so in January<\/a>, when he accepted the team\u2019s offer to take over AHL Springfield and help turn around the Thunderbirds\u2019 season.<\/p>\n Well, with the job Ott has done in the past three months, the organization could be searching for a new coach for its minor-league affiliate this offseason.<\/p>\n After Springfield\u2019s abysmal start to the 2025-26 season, the 43-year-old first-time head coach has the Thunderbirds (32-32-6-2) in the Calder Cup playoffs. They will open a best-of-three first-round series against the Charlotte Checkers at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C.<\/p>\n It was a bit of a surprise the day after the Blues were blanked 5-0 by the Edmonton Oilers on Jan. 18 when the club announced that Ott, an associate coach on Jim Montgomery\u2019s staff, would be taking over in Springfield. But in pursuit of a head coaching job in the NHL, he knew that he needed experience in that role at another level and looked forward to the opportunity in the AHL.<\/p>\n The Thunderbirds were in the midst of their second season under Steve Konowalchuk and were 14-18-4-2 when the change was made \u2014 after going 2-10-4-2 out of the gate.<\/p>\n The club lost one game before Ott arrived from Edmonton, and since then has gone 18-13-2-0.<\/p>\n The regular season wrapped up with a 4-3 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack last Saturday, earning the Thunderbirds the sixth and final playoff spot in the Atlantic Division. They will be one of 23 teams in the postseason.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, things transitioned really quick for this group, and I\u2019m really proud of the group,\u201d Ott said. \u201cThey believed from the get-go of the process of how we\u2019re going to play. The practice habits and details continue to get better, and you can see it transition into our game. We picked up a lot of valuable points along the way and grew into a team to get to this situation.\u201d<\/p>\n The importance of Springfield\u2019s playoff appearance is clear. The days of St. Louis supplying its former AHL affiliate in Chicago with a handful of players are long gone. The Blues have full control of the hockey operations in Springfield, including co-general managers Tim Taylor and Ryan Miller, and the roster is littered with top prospects.<\/p>\n There are forwards Aleksanteri Kaskimaki (third round, 2022), Otto Stenberg (first round, 2023), Juraj Pekarcik (third round, 2023), Jakub Stancl (fourth round, 2023) and Hugh McGing (fifth round, 2018); defensemen Michael Buchinger (third round, 2022), Theo Lindstein (first round, 2023), Leo L\u00f6\u00f6f (third round, 2020) and Colin Ralph (second round, 2024); and goalie Vadim Zherenko (seventh round, 2019).<\/p>\n The Blues have mixed in some veterans, too, including forwards Chris Wagner (401 NHL games) and Dillon Dube (325), as well as defenseman Calle Rosen (93).<\/p>\n \u201cIt really has been collectively a team effort,\u201d Ott said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got great leadership with Wagner, McGing and Rosen, who we are familiar with the Blues, and Dillon Dube. Then you take on the next wave of our prospects. I can go down the list of all the guys having special moments in different games.\u201d<\/p>\n Wagner leads Springfield with 24 goals and 50 points, and Kaskimaki is tied for second place in goals (20) and is second in points (44). The 22-year-old played five games with the Blues earlier this season and has taken on a \u201chuge role,\u201d Ott said, leading all forwards in minutes. He\u2019s on the top line with Wagner and Dube and has 11 goals and 25 points in the last 29 games.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve had great chemistry,\u201d Ott said. \u201cAll three of them play the game the right way, and they\u2019re getting rewarded offensively \u2014 not only being offensive, but from checking. When they\u2019re checking their offense back, Kaski has been able to use his skill level to really take the next step. There\u2019s areas of his game that just continue to develop, and for a young player to be put in those opportunities, he\u2019s been able to really grab it.\u201d<\/p>\n Stenberg, 20, has returned to Springfield after playing 32 games with the Blues this season. He\u2019s on the second line, and in the 36 games he\u2019s been with the Thunderbirds before and after his NHL call-up, he has four goals and 17 points.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s taken a lot of great steps forward,\u201d Ott said. \u201cWhen I had him in St. Louis, you saw what he can bring, his consistency in his game, he\u2019s on the right side of pucks, he plays on his toes, which you love. When I have him down here, it\u2019s very similar to that, but he\u2019s also getting put into more offensive situations. Kind of similar to Kaski, we want him to excel on the offensive side of things.\u201d<\/p>\n Lindstein, 21, also went back to Springfield for the playoff stretch after suiting up for 17 games in St. Louis. He was minus-24 in 56 games with the Thunderbirds earlier this season, but during his NHL stint, he\u2019s plus-4 in his last three games.<\/p>\n \u201cWe talked a lot about details \u2014 getting pucks on the first touch, moving it quick,\u201d Ott said. \u201cHe has a thing you can\u2019t teach and that is his skating ability. It\u2019s very elite, and he adds to that with great composure to his game. Right now you\u2019re seeing a guy that came back down, and he\u2019s excited to be here, he\u2019s excited to play more meaningful hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, there\u2019s Pekarcik, 20, who showed off some talent in the Blues\u2019 development camp. He ranks seventh on the Thunderbirds in goals (11) and sixth in points (35).<\/p>\n \u201cIf you take his goal last game, it was a one-man show,\u201d Ott said. \u201cHe stripped a guy, got knocked off, got back up, stole the puck and ripped it in the net. His strength with the puck is something that helps his possession game. To continue to develop his game, that will be on both sides of the puck.\u201d<\/p>\n PEKARCIK DANGLES pic.twitter.com\/K0DDL8sD2k<\/a><\/p>\n