Mike Keenan was hired as both general manager and coach prior to the abbreviated 1995 season. It was hoped that he could cure the post-season turmoil Blues fans had endured for years. He instituted major changes, among them trades that sent away fan favorites Brendan Shanahan and Curtis Joseph, as well as the acquisition of the legendary but aging Gretzky and goalie Grant Fuhr, both from the falling-apart Los Angeles Kings (Gretzky left for the New York Rangers as an unrestricted free agent following the season). In spite of all he was prophesied to accomplish, Keenan's playoff resume with St. Louis included a first-round exit in 1995 and a second-round exit in 1996. He was fired on December 19, 1996. Caron was reinstated as interim general manager for the rest of season, and current GM Larry Pleau was hired on June 9, 1997. But that did not stop Hull, who had nevertheless endured a lengthy feud with Keenan, from leaving for the Dallas Stars in 1998, who went on to win the Stanley Cup the next year.
Defensemen Chris Pronger (acquired from the Hartford Whalers in 1995 for Shanahan), Pavol Demitra, Pierre Turgeon, Al MacInnis, and goalie Roman Turek kept the Blues a contender. In 1999-2000, they notched a franchise-record 114 points during the regular season, earning the Presidents' Trophy for the league's best record. However, they were stunned by the San Jose Sharks in the first round in seven games. In 2001, the Blues advanced to the Western Conference Finals before bowing out in five games to eventual Champions Colorado Avalanche. They remained competitive for the next three years, but never got past the second round.
Despite years of mediocrity and the stigma of never being able to "take the next step", the Blues were a playoff presence every year from 1980 to 2004 — the second longest active streak in North American professional sports at the time. Amid several questionable personnel moves and an unstable ownership situation, the Blues finished the 2005-06 season with their worst record in 27 years. They missed the playoffs for only the fourth time in franchise history. Also, for the first time in club history, the normally excellent support seen by St. Louisans began to fade away, with crowds normally numbering around 12,000, a far cry from the team's normal high (about 18,000) in a 19,500 seat arena.
Wal-Mart heir Nancy Walton Laurie and her husband Bill purchased the Blues in 1999, but on June 17, 2005 announced that they would sell the team.Bill Laurie had long desired to buy an NBA team, and it was thought that this desire caused him to neglect the Blues. On September 29, 2005 it was announced that the Lauries signed an agreement to sell the Blues to SCP Worldwide, a consulting an investment group headed by former Madison Square Garden president Dave Checketts. On November 14, 2005 the Blues announced that SCP Worldwide had officially withdrawn from negotiations to buy the team. On December 27, 2005 it was announced that the Blues had signed a letter of intent to exclusively negotiate with General Sports and Entertainment, LLC. However, after the period of exclusivity, SCP entered the picture again. On March 24, 2006, the Lauries completed the sale of the Blues and the lease to the Savvis Center to SCP and TowerBrook Capital Partners, L.P.
Under new management, the Blues promptly installed John Davidson as president of hockey operations, moving Pleau to a mostly advisory role. The former Rangers goalie promptly made some big deals, picking up Jay McKee, Bill Guerin and Manny Legace from free agency, and bringing Doug Weight back to St. Louis after a brief (and productive) stopover in Carolina. Weight was again traded in December 2007 to Anaheim along with a minor league player in exchange for Andy McDonald. Davidson is attempting to build a strong American base of players for the Blues.
Following the disappointing 2005-06 season, which saw the Blues with the worst record in the NHL, the new management focused on rebuilding the franchise. At the beginning of the 2007 season, the Blues looked to be competitive in the Central Division. However, injuries plagued the team all season, and the lack of a sniper hampered them as well. Fan support was sluggish during the first half of the campaign, and the end of the calendar year was capped by an 11-game losing streak. On December 11, 2006, the Blues fired coach Mike Kitchen and replaced by former Los Angeles Kings coach Andy Murray. On January 4, 2007, the Blues had a record of 6-1-3 in their previous 10 games, which was the best in the NHL during that stretch. Despite a healthy 24-point jump from the previous season, the strain of playing in a conference where seven teams finished with more than 100 points kept them out of the playoffs for the second year in a row.
Immediately prior to the 2007 Trade Deadline, the Blues traded several key players, such as Bill Guerin, Keith Tkachuk, and Dennis Wideman to gain draft picks and to make a final push for the playoffs. They resigned Tkachuk during the offseason. Brad Boyes, picked up from the Bruins in exchange for Wideman, is the fastest Blues player to reach 20 goals since Brett Hull.
During the offseason, the Blues signed free agent Paul Kariya to a 3-year contract worth $18 million, re-signed defenseman Barret Jackman to a one-year contract, lost their captain Dallas Drake to the Detroit Red Wings, and traded prospect Carl Soderberg to the Boston Bruins in exchange for yet more depth in the goalie crease, Hannu Toivonen.
On October 2, 2007 the Blues finalized the season starting roster, which included rookies David Perron, Steven Wagner, and Erik Johnson. On October 10, 2007, the Blues introduced a new mascot: Louie.
On December 14, 2007 the Blues traded Doug Weight a 38 year old four time All Star Center to the Anaheim Ducks as part of a package to acquire 30 year old Center Andy McDonald.
As of December 22nd 2007, the Blues telecast on FSN Midwest was estimated to be reaching 30,000 households per game. This is up 125% compared to the same time last year.