ST. PAUL, Minn. — When the St. Louis Blues faced off with the Minnesota Wild on Jan. 7, a player they hope will be a critical piece of their future was sitting in the lower bowl of Xcel Energy Center with some friends.

For a night, Jimmy Snuggerud wasn’t a college player or an NHL prospect. He was a fan. In enemy territory. Eating mini-donuts.

“Seeing St. Louis play and it being against the Wild was cool because I watched the Wild a lot growing up,” the 2022 Blues first-rounder said. “But I’m with the Blues now, so I was pulling for them to win. It didn’t come out the way they wanted, but it was such a close game the whole way.”

The Blues fell short, 6-4, but Snuggerud left the rink feeling like the team’s two-day trip to Minnesota was productive. He had dinner with general manager Doug Armstrong, special assistant to the GM Alexander Steen and coach Jim Montgomery, and he got a glimpse of the group he may be joining at the end of his University of Minnesota season.

It was the first time Snuggerud had met Montgomery.

“It was nice to hear his feelings toward hockey,” Snuggerud said. “One thing I really remember is how he said his coaching style is. He likes players who are competitive and have good hockey IQ, and when you hear that from a coach, it makes you happy. So just hearing that from him, he seems like a great coach.”

Great to see Blues first-round draft pick Jimmy Snuggerud at last night's game!

It’s been nearly a year since Snuggerud had the opportunity to play in St. Louis — instead of watching them from the seats — but chose to return for his junior season at Minnesota. At the time, there was some disappointment in the Blues organization that he wouldn’t be turning pro, but as the staff and Snuggerud discussed at dinner, perhaps it’s worked out well for both sides.

The Gophers (18-4-2) are No. 3 in the latest NCAA men’s hockey rankings, and Snuggerud leads the team with 30 points (12 goals, 18 assists). His points are tied for the third-most in the country, and his 12 goals are tied for seventh.

“We made a push to get him to come and he was honest,” Armstrong said. “We weren’t sure what type of team they were going to have because with college hockey, it changes. But he thought they were going to have a really good team, and he thought he could be a part of that. I said to him, ‘What you projected was right.’

“I’m not sure that there would have been a wrong answer because if he had come with us, that would’ve been fine, too. But he’s having an exceptional year, he has a leadership role there as a 20-year-old and that’s very important for his growth.”

When Snuggerud announced that he was staying in school, he told The Athletic that there were several specific factors. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound right winger wanted to work on his puck play, take on a top role on the team as a captain and win an NCAA national championship.

As far as his play on the ice, “That’s something I’ve improved on over the past four months of the season, kind of holding onto the puck and making more plays and protection in the corners,” Snuggerud said. “That’s something you need at the pro level, and I feel like I’ve made subtle growth in those areas.”

Sitting in his office after practice, Gophers coach Bob Motzko agreed with that assessment.

“Yes, he’s stronger,” Motzko said. “He’s still a young boy, a young man. It’s another year in the weight room. He continues to mature his game. The one thing he does so well, and we all know it, is he shoots the puck. But you’ve got to have other tricks up your sleeve, and those are the things that he’s really concentrating on — becoming more responsible inside a shift, not just looking to score.”

An example of the consistency Snuggerud has had this season can be seen in his game-by-game production. A year ago, he had 21 goals and 34 points in 39 games, but there were also seven multi-point games and 15 games in which he had no points. This season, he has 10 multi-point games and just six games in which he hasn’t registered a point.

“I said to Jimmy, ‘If you get a point per game, that’s a 40-point year. Not many do that, and you average over that,'” Motzko said. “Before, he’d look for the big home runs and the big weekends. This year, you look up and all of a sudden he’s third in the country in scoring, and he hasn’t had a hat trick one night and then two games without a goal.”

Meanwhile, Snuggerud was named one of Minnesota’s captains and has developed into the leader that both he and the team wanted him to be.

“I said, ‘Those roles are earned, and you’re the one who determines that — not me handing it to you,'” Motzko said. “He wears a letter now, and he’s taken pride in that. He wants to do all the right things to help the team be successful, and I think that’s been invaluable for him.”

The Gophers have been ravaged by injuries this season, particularly at forward, and Snuggerud has displayed his leadership with his selflessness.

“We’ll get into games, I’ve got to change lines (because of the injuries), and I tell him, ‘You’ve got to go out with different players,'” Motzko said. “He might have one center one period and one the next. A lot of times with younger guys, they get comfortable, but he doesn’t bat an eye. Whatever happens doesn’t faze him if it helps the team.”

Blues assistant GM Tim Taylor has kept tabs on Snuggerud this season and has seen the results first-hand.

“Everything that Jimmy wanted to do going back this year, everything he talked about with the details of his game and being a vocal leader, he’s done so far,” Taylor said. “He’s taken another step to be a pro. We’re really, really pleased with his work ethic. He talked the talk, and now he’s walking the walk because he’s done a really good job. The next step for him now is leading his team to hopefully a national championship. That’s his goal, and we want him to do that, as well.”

It’s well-documented that Snuggerud’s dream is to win an NCAA title at Minnesota because he, his father (Dave Snuggerud) and his grandfather (Jim Westby) have come up just short. So while joining the Blues last season was enticing, it would’ve meant leaving some business unfinished.

“These kids, especially the Snuggerud family, you’re vested,” Motzko said. “Once these guys are grown men and have kids and grandkids, they bring them back here and say, ‘This is where I played college hockey.’ This is a special time in these players’ lives, and he wasn’t ready for it to be over, knowing he’s going to have a long run (in the NHL). The next step is going to be there.”

With the NCAA Frozen Four in St. Louis this season, it makes it more difficult not to think about the fairy-tale ending his story could have.

“I told him the ultimate end to the season would be to pack a big suitcase when he comes to St. Louis for the Final Four, win that, and then come to us,” Armstrong said. “But one of the things we left him with was, ‘Keep your head where your feet are,’ and right now his feet are at the Gophers. We want his head to stay there, and the rest will take care of itself.”

“It’s always in the back of your head,” Snuggerud admitted. “Everyone in here knows that we want to make the Frozen Four, and it’s cool that it’s in St. Louis. That’s another cool factor of it. But I’m just trying to be where my feet are, like Army said, because who knows how much college hockey I really have left. I’m trying to enjoy the little things, like the crowds here and the road games, and just do everything I can to embrace the moment.”

There doesn’t seem to be the same pressure on Snuggerud’s pending decision about joining the Blues as there was last season.

“Yeah, I’d say there’s a little less in my own mind,” he said. “St. Louis did a really good job of not applying too much pressure throughout the whole year, but in my own mind there was definitely a lot of pressure This year, it’s a lot easier to know everything and know what’s going on. It’s a lot easier, yes.”

“The Blues were incredible, but I think sometimes with these first-round guys, they’ve got the (NHL) team that drafts them in their ear when they’re freshmen and sophomores,” Motzko said. “I’ve watched it be very distracting for young players, and I think it was in Jim’s mind last year. It really bothered him at the end last year because he wasn’t sure. But once you make the decision, ‘I’m going back and it will be last year,’ you’re comfortable. There’s a comfort level in that you made your decision and you’re not looking over your shoulder.”

Snuggerud may not be looking over his shoulder, but whenever he arrives in St. Louis, he’ll have to be looking for a new number to put on his back. He wears No. 81 with the Gophers and when he’s played in development camps with the Blues. But now those digits belong to Dylan Holloway.

“He was there before me,” Snuggerud said. “A number is just a number. He’s doing really well with it, so I’m happy to see him having success this season and hopefully he can keep moving forward with it.”