A chat with Andy McDonald

By LOUIE KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- Andy McDonald is the elder statesman (33) on the Blues roster that just concluded its season, but that didn't stop the veteran forward from putting up impressive stats (20 goals, 50 points in 58 games) despite missing 24 games with a concussion. See what his thoughts are about this past season and what lies ahead:

How disappointing is it to be on the outside looking in again with a team that came in filled with so much promise?
Obviously disappointing missing the playoffs, but we did have a lot of positives this year. ... We've got some younger players who have kind of taken that next step and certainly become leaders on this team and their play has become less of a younger player and more of one of those predominant players in the league. That's what we need.

With so many younger players getting a chance this season that may not have without the injuries, how vital was this experience for them going forward?
You have to go through adversity to have some success and we definitely went through that this year. With the injuries, we had a lot of younger players that got to play big minutes for us and play in different situations, and that's only going to help out. I'm really encouraged. ... I think there's a lot of guys right now that are really looking forward to next year and certainly getting themselves ready for the off-season.

How closely will you pay attention to the ownership situation?
We definitely watch it. You never know what happens with that. You're obviously going to be watching it because it will have an impact on your team.

Without making excuses, what really kept you guys out more than anything?
I don't think you can talk about this year without talking about the injuries that we unfortunately had. ... The feeling in this room is that we're close. I know guys are unhappy about not making the playoffs, but we're definitely going to be coming into next year thinking that our goal is to play into June.