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Blues won’t have their own farm team next season

Martin Brodeur Retirement Press Conference

ST. LOUIS, MO - JANUARY 29: Doug Armstrong general manager of the St. Louis Blues talks at Martin Brodeurs retirement press conference at Scottrade Center on January 29, 2015 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Jeff Curry/Getty Images)

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The St. Louis Blues will be the only NHL team without an AHL affiliate next season.

The Blues lost their farm team, the Chicago Wolves, to the Vegas Golden Knights, so here’s how it will work next season, according to the Post-Dispatch:

After having total control of the Wolves last season — hiring the coaching staff, implementing its system and allotting ice time — they will have no say next year.

The Blues will instead “associate” with Vegas, supplying the Wolves with some prospects, but there won’t be enough roster spots for all of their prospects, so others will be loaned around the league.

Obviously, that’s not ideal. The Blues will work to change it in time for the 2018-19 season.

“We were hoping to have it done this year so it’s not something we’re starting from ground zero on today,” GM Doug Armstrong told the newspaper. “We talked to a couple groups about coming in for this year; it didn’t happen, but we really have to put that at the forefront of our thought process.”

Kansas City was once considered a strong possibility to become the Blues’ farm team, but AHL president/CEO David Andrews shot that down in January.