Paul Kariya: “Our team got off to a great start and our power play was fantastic,” Kariya said. “If you’re going to be a good offensive player in the league, you have to produce on the power play.”

(Note: Kariya registered nine of his 15 points on the power play before his early-season exit).

Q: You’ve been a vocal fan of youngsters T.J. Oshie, David Perron and Patrik Berglund. What did you see from them as the year progressed?

PK: “They play with a lot of energy and a lot of drive. For every player it’s different, but it takes a certain amount of time to get comfortable and just figure out what works and what doesn’t work in the league. I was just amazed how quickly all three of them have figured it out. They’re only going to get better. It’s really exciting to think about what they can all become and how good our team is going to be as a result of it.”

Q: There was a lot of talk last year after the arrival of Oshie and Berglund about having three scoring lines. But then you missed the bulk of the season, and Andy McDonald and Oshie missed significant time, too. What are you thoughts about getting everybody back?

PK: “It’ll be a nice luxury for (Blues coach) Andy Murray to have all the combinations and different line matchups that he can interchange depending on how the other team is playing us. The thing with our team now is we do have a lot of players that are interchangeable. We never want to talk about this in the preseason, but injuries always come up every year and to have guys that can play both right wing or center and switch off depending on what’s needed is a huge luxury for Andy, and that’s only going to help our team.”

Q: The organization has come a long way since you signed a three-year contract in 2007. The Blues were 34-35-13 (81 points) the season before you arrived, and the club finished 41-31-10 (92 points) and made the playoffs last season. What’s impressed you?

PK: “John Davidson and Larry Pleau and the heads of the team had a plan and a vision for where they wanted to take the Blues. I think we’re definitely on track, if not ahead of schedule. You can never tell how quickly younger players are going to develop, but when you add Erik Johnson, who’s healthy, that’s really exciting. He’s a dominant offensive defenseman who has a great power-play shot. That’s only going to help our team. When you look at the talent we have on our team, with the emergence of the young players … it’s just going to get better. The thing that I’m really excited about is playing with all these guys. It’s been great to see how quickly our club has turned everything around.”

Q: What were your thoughts on the club re-signing Keith Tkachuk?

PK: “Oh, fantastic move. I called (Tkachuk) right after. Keith is such a great guy. I thought he did just a fantastic job (last season). Forget about what he did on the ice . . . in the locker room, helping the young guys grow as players, teaching them what it takes to play in the NHL. I just thought he did a fantastic job with that last year. He obviously can still put the puck in the net and be a force out there. We’re lucky to have him for another year.”

Q: Are the Blues a playoff contender in 2009-10?

PK: “Every year, what you want as an athlete is an opportunity to win, and in our league, that means making the playoffs. That’s goal No. 1 and that starts with the first day of training camp . . . coming to camp in good shape and going from there.”

Q: How excited are you to get the season started, after playing only 11 games last season because of the hip injuries?

“Going into every year, I prepare to be the best player I can be. This year is certainly no different. Missing an entire year last year has fueled the fire a lot more than normally. Motivation is every bit an issue.”