Bortuzzo Next In Line Of Former Blues Stanley Cup Winners To Get His Tribute

ST. LOUIS -- They've all received their curtain calls: David Perron, Vladimir Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz and the latest, Craig Berube, among them.

All have received proper accolades as Stanley Cup champions with the St. Louis Blues, receiving a video tribute and recognition by fans that adore them.

Robert Bortuzzo was the latest. And in typical Bortuzzo fashion, he wasn't looking for the glitz and glamor. But he got it anyway.

The 34-year-old, now a defenseman with the Utah Hockey Club, remembers the day he came to St. Louis and was taken under the wing by older, more experienced Blues veterans. Guys like Alex Steen, David Backes, Paul Stastny, Barret Jackman, Jay Bouwmeester, Steve Ott. Guys he looked up to as mentors.

"I remember when I was in that position and it was super exciting going out for dinner with older guys or hang with them," Bortuzzo said Thursday prior to Utah's 4-2 win against the Blues. "There's always that youthful energy. I've always found that to be important for a locker room. It was fun to be a part of that in St. Louis and to be on the other side of it here with [Logan] Cooley and [Dylan] Guenther, [Jack] McBain, the list kind of goes on and on of young guys who are super excited to come to the rink every day that keep it light. It's been a blast. I'm trying to embrace it and pass anything on we can.

"I really do (enjoy being a mentor). Our young guys are awesome."

The latest former Blue off that Cup-winning squad, Bortuzzo was brought to the newest NHL franchise in Utah to try and bestow some of that wisdom on a young, rising roster.

"It's just continually about getting better," Bortuzzo said. "I spent 10 years in St. Louis, the first four we were kind of knocking at the door. Whether we always lost in the first round or conference finals, we were always kind of getting better and progressing. We always had a tight knit crew and it's definitely something you see here in Utah. Fortunately they'll all get the chance to kind of grow up together; a lot of guys have been here for a while together. I think they did that in St. Louis. The Schwartzs and Tarasenkos, Steen and Bouwmeester, just guys that have been there forever. I'm sure that's what we're looking to build here."

Bortuzzo, traded to the New York Islanders Dec. 9, 2023 for a seventh round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, was back in St. Louis for the first time, and couldn't help but notice something up above at Enterprise Center: the Stanley Cup banner.

"It's hard to even start somewhere," Bortuzzo said. "A lot of good memories, but at the end of the day, it's just teammates, buddies you've created lifelong friendships with and got to do it with them. It's pretty much the most special thing.

"Yeah, it's kind of a ways away. It was obviously super special in the moment. The years before and following them. But ask any athlete, you kind of just move on and you're on to your next challenge. We pushed for Cups after that and it didn't happen in St. Louis. Now we're here in Utah, a part of something different trying to build their own thing here."

Even as the guy who played more of the spare parts role as a third-pairing defenseman, Bortuzzo will forever be a fan favorite. Simply because he contributed to something special within this city.

"I think a lot of the guys embraced the city," Bortuzzo said. "That was a huge part of what we did. We were one of the stronger fan bases in the league I felt like. Players embraced that. It's pretty special here.

"It's a big city, but I always thought of it as a small town. A favor was never far away, just good people. They really just ask for you to put the work in, sacrifice a bit. It's a working class town that loves their sports teams. It was super fun to be a part of that.

"I'm sure in 10, 15, 20, 25 years hopefully we'll be getting together and coming back to the town. The love we felt after we were able to accomplish that was pretty special. You could feel the energy in the town. That was a cool feeling. We'll never forget that parade day obviously. You could just feel the energy in the city. Not a thankfulness but just maybe a relief or I'm sure mixed emotions, but that was pretty cool."