Vladimir Tarasenko is expected to be an important part of St. Louis' future and he received that message before leaving the team after their playoff elimination.

"I was very impressed with his season," GM Doug Armstrong said. "Now he has to go home and he has to come back in and be a player that we can count on. He left with a mandate that, 'Your name is on the board in an important spot now.'" Tarasenko played in just one playoff game in the Blues' first-round exit against Los Angeles after producing eight goals and 19 points in 38 games during his rookie season.

Vladimir Tarasenko played just 5:52 in his NHL playoff debut Monday night.

Tarasenko was a healthy scratch in Games 1-3, but coach Ken Hitchcock decided to change things up Monday night. Unfortunately for the rookie, Hitchcock didn't change his preference to use veteran players in key situations, which severely limited Tarasenko's minutes and impact. Tarasenko has a ton of offensive potential but likely won't make a postseason impact until next season at the earliest.

Blues coach Ken Hitchcock reportedly advised rookie Vladimir Tarasenko to "get ready to play" after Saturday's loss to the Kings.

Hitchcock would not commit to playing Tarasenko, who has been healthy scratch in the first three games of the series, in Monday's Game Four, however that appears a definite possibility. "I haven't gotten that far yet," Hitchcock said. "That's tomorrow's decision. I'll have to sleep on a lot of that stuff just to see what we need. I think he looks hungry and ready to play and I'm sure he's going to play well when he gets in. But you're not really sure if you want to screw around with the lineup right now when we're playing so well, so I've got to balance that out right now."