from Norm Sanders of the News-Democrat,

No longer one of the "young guys" or "new guys," T.J. Oshie believes the time for waiting and hoping are long gone.

He believes the St. Louis Blues are ready for big things right now and says the club has the necessary ingredients to get it done.

"Now more than ever we've got the personnel, we've got the coaching," said Oshie, a 26-year-old right winger who has been with the Blues since 2008. "The front office did everything to put the right guys on the ice. It just comes down to us doing it."

Those types of comments have been coming from the Blues dressing room for several years now. Oshie is part of a core group of young players -- David Backes, Patrik Berglund, Alex Pietrangelo, etc. -- that the team has been patiently waiting on to break through to the next level.

That patience may be wearing thin since former Blues winger David Perron was sent to Edmonton for winger Magnus Paajarvi. Blues ownership also has doled out contract extensions that has driven the team's salaries near the top of the cap.

Is this the year the Blues and their fans have been waiting for?

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