Blues are the sleeper team of the Western Conference

With NHL training camps a little more than a month away, the St. Louis Blues are my nomination for the team that is probably better than we think. They have missed the playoffs the past two seasons, but they could be the surprise team in the West.

I certainly wouldn't say they among the Stanley Cup favorites. But it seems as if the Blues have the oportunity to make the kind of rise that the Tampa Bay Lightning made in the East last season.

Why the Blues are a sleeper:

1. They have six returning forwards (David Backes, Chris Stewart, Patrik Berglund, Alexander Steen, Andy McDonald and Matt D'Agostini) who scored 20 or more goals last season. To put that into perspective, the Boston Bruins have four and Vancouver has three.

2. That list doesn't include T.J. Oshie, 24, who probably would have been the Blues' leading scorer had he not missed 33 games with injury.

3. David Perron, 23, is back on course to play this season after missing almost all of last season with a serious concussion. He probably won't start the season, but when he does return, he gives the team another dangerous, high-yield scorer.

4. Jaroslav Halak, 26, is entering the best years of his career. Last season was his first season as a wire-to-wire No. 1 goalie. You can bet he learned something. Would anyone be surprised if his save percentage was .920 this season?

5. St. Louis' defense is still a work in progress, but presumably Alex Pietrangelo and Kevin Shattenkirk will be more polished this season.

6. Stewart, 23, has the potential to score 40 goals. Maybe it will be this season. He had 28 goals in 62 games last season.

7. Berglund, 23, is still learning on the job and starting to explore the depths of his talent. It's not unthinkable that he could net 30 goals this season.

8. The Blues signed Jamie Langenbrunner and Jason Arnott without much fanfare this summer, but both are former captains and Stanley Cup winners. Their experience will help this young team. Arnott netted 17 goals last season.

9. General manager Doug Armstrong has done a quality job renovating this roster. Why would he stop now? It seems plausible he will be looking around to add pieces.

10. The Blues have players who are hard to play against. Backes had 213 hits last season. It seems as if solid defenseman Barret Jackman has been around forever, but he's only 30. He plays 20 minutes a game and blocks plenty of shots. Roman Polak is another 20-minute defenseman who will dish out some hits.