Darryl Sydor Retires

Darryl Sydor only spent one season with the Blues, but he made a significant impact during his brief stint with the organization. Sydor has announced his retirement and will step in as an assistant coach for the AHL’s Houston Aeros.

Sydor skated in 1,291 games in his storied career, spending time with Los Angeles, Dallas, Tampa Bay, Columbus, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. He will finish his career with 98 goals and 409 assists for 507 points.

The Blues brought Sydor in last season to add some needed veteran experience to an extremely young lineup. Sydor was supposed to take Erik Johnson under his wing and help bring his game to the next level.

Sydor only skated in 47 games with the Blues, contributing just eight assists, but his impact on the young skaters greatly outweighs his statistical contributions. Sydor was often seen as one of the key veteran leaders on the squad along with Keith Tkachuk, and you could often find him working with the less experienced players, assisting in building their game.

Sydor should excel in his assistant coaching role as he has proved to be a quiet leader both on and off the ice.

With Sydor not in the mix last season and Tkachuk retired as well, the St. Louis lineup just keeps getting younger. While I am thrilled that the Blues are moving in a youthful direction, I am concerned that this team will have no leadership. Skaters such as David Backes and TJ Oshie must step up and be leaders on this team.

Now is the time for the Kid Line to grow into the leaders of the franchise.