ST. LOUIS — If there was a silver lining to the St. Louis Blues’ 2014-15 season, it would appear to be the development of 23-year-old Russian forward Vladimir Tarasenko from promising talent to league superstar.

Over the past year, he graduated from a 21-goal regular season to 37 goals, increased his overall point total from 43 to 73 and earned his first All-Star nod. His numbers during the regular season catapulted him among the top 10 goal scorers overall in the NHL this year, putting his name alongside the league’s biggest: Alexander Ovechkin. Steven Stamkos. John Tavares and Rick Nash. Tyler Seguin.

The Blues have long required such a player — an elite shooter, the kind of guy too dangerous to leave unguarded once the tip of his skate crosses the blue line. But they didn’t have to go outside the organization to find him. They just needed to give Tarasenko a little — in fact, very little — time to develop.

Picked by the Blues in the first round of the 2010 draft, Tarasenko spent most of the next two years playing in the Kontinental Hockey League and representing Russia at international championships. His rookie NHL season of 2012-13 was shortened by the lockout and time on injured reserve — he played in 38 games and scored eight goals, two of them coming in his first-ever NHL contest.

Last year, with the luxury of a full NHL season, he broke the 20-goal benchmark. A taste of what he could become came in the Blues’ six-game playoff series against Chicago. He found a way to break through on the extra-man unit when no one else could, putting up two power-play goals — the only Blues player to tally a goal with the man advantage that postseason.

This year, often centered by Blues newcomer Jori Lehtera, who had played on the same KHL roster as Tarasenko, the Russian became impossible to ignore. And when he wasn’t scoring he was helping others do so — in 15 November games he had 10 goals and seven assists, averaging over a point per game and earning the NHL’s second star of the month.

But it wasn’t just that he was scoring, it was how he was doing it. Above all others, the goal that seemed to put him on the map was a one-handed beauty against the New York Rangers on Nov. 3.

The hockey world went wild, and so did the headlines splashed across the Internet: "Tarasenko Makes Rangers Look Silly For Fantastic Goal." "Vladimir Tarasenko With a Goal of the Year Candidate." "Vladimir Tarasenko Will Make You Pay Attention."

That same week, he did this:

Vladimir Tarasenko is OUT OF CONTROL. Watch. Be amazed. Tell your friends. https://t.co/vvuLyqWTAv — NHL (@NHL) November 7, 2014

Going into the season, his teammates were somewhat forewarned.

"We kind of all had a pretty good idea of how special he is as a player," Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk said. "I think the thing that really allowed him to take the next step this year was just the confidence, and I think having this be his third year, that’s when you start to feel comfortable. You’re learning the ropes the first two years, but he made big strides this year, and he still has some room to go. And that’s (a) pretty fortunate thing for us."

He improved, too, in the little things over the year — details of the game that Blues forward Alexander Steen says sometimes go unnoticed.

"The work ethic, hockey sense stuff — all that," the alternate captain says. "Maturity on the ice."

Meanwhile, Tarasenko was one of the few Blues goal scorers to continue producing come the postseason. He amassed six goals over six games — two more than his totals last postseason in the same span. At the time the Blues were eliminated, he led the NHL in postseason goals. He also got his first NHL postseason hat trick.

"The St. Louis Blues will not be in the spot on July 5, if he’s not signed, not to be able to match any offer sheet that’s out there," Armstrong said.

While questions abound regarding the composition of the next Blues roster, Tarasenko has proved he’s the one sure thing.

You can follow Elisabeth Meinecke on Twitter at @lismeinecke or email her at ecmeinecke@gmail.com.