ST. LOUIS _ With chaos all around him, he has been quiet and calm.
On Wednesday, bottles of Bud Light were being emptied to his left and right as he stood near the edge of the TD Garden ice and watched, hands in his pockets, soaking it in as others sucked down suds.
On Thursday, up on the deck at OB Clark's bar in Brentwood, he raised a beer to toast the fans who had gathered below.
On Friday, he arrived at the Blues team store in the Enterprise Center to buy some Stanley Cup championship gear, then stood in line to buy it like one of us.
Doug Armstrong is taking time to enjoy this, even if he refuses to put himself in the middle of it.
"We are going into uncharted water again now," the Blues' president of hockey operations and general manager said after the club's Game 7 win. "When I first got to St. Louis, I was surprised at how much anger was built up with the fan base of not winning. I remember saying that to someone. Why are we blaming this group for something that did not happen in the '70s, '80s and '90s? But after 11 years, you become part of that fabric. Now it's nice not to be part of that, but part of something special."
The well-documented history of the Blues' shortcomings is just that now. History. The same can be said for the sludge this edition of the Blues marched through.
How many of those beer-drinking players on Wednesday could have been traded? How many of those celebrating fans on Thursday once thought Armstrong should be fired? How long were the lines to buy Blues gear six months ago?
If it was Armstrong who got the Blues into this season's mess, it was Armstrong who led them out. Which part will you remember, the beginning or the end?
"There was a lot of white noise around our team at different times during the year," Armstrong said. "It could have been easy to go the wrong direction. There were a lot of people questioning our whole organization. My leadership. The players' leadership. The coaches' leadership. I'm a little bit older now. I just want to reflect on what it means to these guys, and be a part of it."
At this time last year, Armstrong and Blues owner Tom Stillman were in the process of making a series of moves that announced championship expectations. The Blues welcomed the hype. It turned on them.
After packing Ballpark Village for an ice-breaker event, the team flopped in its regular-season home opener and remained down, stumbling to a mark of 7-9-3 before Armstrong made the decision to fire Mike Yeo and promote Craig Berube to interim coach. Berube turned to rookie goalie Jordan Binnington. The Blues won 11 in a row during a stretch that defined their season. Armstrong saw a good thing rolling and let it ride.
The Blues no longer are the NHL team waiting the longest for its first championship. Their worst-to-first climb deserves a movie. Armstrong was the director who wrote the script, knew when to adjust it on the fly _ and perhaps most importantly, understood when it was time to stand back and watch. That's what he did during playoff games, with the collar of his jacket turned high, often munching nervously on Swedish Fish candy.
Many GMs are wishing they would have traded for Ryan O'Reilly. Too late. Armstrong prioritized the forward after the Blues were stiff-armed by free agent John Tavares.
Armstrong never let the false narrative about O'Reilly _ good player on a team that can't win big _ give him pause. O'Reilly became the Blues' most consistent player. His work ethic inspired teammates. And on the biggest stage, he shined, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy despite playing with cracked ribs. (He wasn't the only one playing hurt, per Armstrong. Vladimir Tarasenko and his shoulder are on that list. So is Alexander Steen.)
Many GMs would have pulled the plug on the Blues by December. A vocal portion of the fans once wanted the team to, "Lose for Hughes." The grassroots movement encouraged Armstrong to tank toward improved chances of drafting prized prospect Jack Hughes.
Months later, Hughes was the guest of the league at one of the Blues' Stanley Cup Final games. Surreal. Armstrong also resisted calls to make major moves at the trade deadline, instead deciding to let the team's improving chemistry build.
"The reality is, I never thought I was as dumb as people thought I was in December, and I'm not nearly as smart as people think we are now," Armstrong said "It takes a village, and these guys all did such great work. There is so much work that goes on behind the scenes."
Armstrong nodded toward a group of front-office workers who were celebrating on the ice, Stanley Cup championship hats atop their heads.
"That's what makes me excited," he said.
Many GMs are wishing they would have given a shot to Berube. Too late. He became just the seventh coach in NHL history to take over a team during the season then win the Stanley Cup. On the fly, "Chief" changed a team's character. It was Berube who delivered on Armstrong's challenge for the Blues to rediscover their blue-collar brand. It was Armstrong who resisted the urge to rush a coaching search before he found out what Berube could do.
He will not be slow to extend Berube. Right?
"No, we're going to let him go," Armstrong joked. "Of course we are going to get it taken care of. We are going to have to get down to work pretty soon."
But first, the parade St. Louis has spent nearly 52 years imagining.
Since Armstrong officially became the team's GM before the 2010-11 season, the Blues are tied (with the Bruins, ironically) for third-most regular season wins (403). The Blues now are one of the six teams to win the Cup during that span. And with the bulk of the roster coming back, with a coach and a goalie in place, the Blues aren't exactly going anywhere.
Uncharted territory, indeed.
