In part because of injuries, Blais’ early promise never blossomed as an NHL rookie. The left winger had a goal and two assists in 11 games for the Blues. He went back and forth so often from San Antonio to St. Louis — six times — some suggested the highway between the two cities should be called the Sammy Blais Expressway.

Thompson (Buffalo) and Megan (Detroit) no longer are with the Blues. But Ryan O’Relly, David Perron, Tyler Bozak, Patrick Maroon and a healthy Robby Fabbri are here. Touted prospects Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, both coming off standout junior seasons, should make serious pushes for a roster spot as well.

What about Blais? Could it be that last year was his best chance to make and stay on the Blues’ roster?

“I’m just gonna try to come in here this training camp and do what I can do, and show them that I deserve a spot on the team,” Blais said. “But there’s a lot of players now that got traded (and signed) here, so just gotta work and see what’s gonna happen.”

Blais, who turned 22 in June, split his time during the offseason between St. Louis and Quebec City, where his parents live. After a summer in which his main off-ice emphasis was adding strength, he returned to St. Louis a couple of weeks ago to gear up for camp, which starts Sept. 14.

“The guys were bigger and stronger” in the NHL, Blais said. “When you play one-on-one in the corner — that’s what I was working on in the summer. And I think I did a pretty good job. Eric (Renaghan) did a pretty good job with me this summer.”

Renaghan is the Blues’ strength and conditioning coach.

Even with the added strength, Blais’ weight has stayed the same, but his body fat is down. He hopes his scoring touch is as good as ever, because that part of his game has never been a problem.

Taken No. 176 overall by the Blues in the 2014 draft, Blais scored a total of 67 goals over his last two seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In his first season of pro hockey, he scored 26 goals for the Chicago Wolves in 2016-17, the second-highest total on the team.

Even with the injuries and his back-and-forth existence last season, Blais was a point-a-game player for the San Antonio Rampage with 17 goals and 23 assists in 42 contests.

“Overall, I had a pretty good season,” Blais said. “I had good season in the American Hockey League and when I was here (with the Blues) I was trying to do my best. I had some injuries that were like bad timing for me, but I just have to be confident in myself going into this training camp.”

Both of his injuries last season came during the first period of his first games back with the Blues following a San Antonio call-up. There was a lower-body injury Dec. 16 against Winnipeg that landed him on the Blues’ injured-reserve list for three weeks before he was sent down once again to San Antonio.

His next call-up was Feb. 19, but he suffered a concussion the next night against San Jose, which proved to be his last game of the season for the Blues. Except for a brief call-up in late March that resulted in no game action with the Blues, Blais spent the rest of the season in the AHL, where he got first line and first power play duty with the Rampage.

“It’s a learning process there,” Blais said. “You’re working on your game and I think I’ve done that a lot. I think I’m a good player there, just gotta bring it here when I get the call.”

Coach Mike Yeo made it clear last season that he wanted better defense and more focused play from Blais, who he said has a tendency to drift on the ice when he doesn’t have the puck.

It will take a spectacular camp and preseason, plus injuries to others, for Blais to earn a spot on the Blues’ top three lines. Otherwise, he’s among a traffic jam of roster candidates vying for a fourth-line job or one of what probably will be two reserve spots at forward on the opening-day roster.

Normally, defense and checking ability are more desirable on the fourth line, but Yeo said he could go with more skill there this season.

“That’s possible,” Yeo said. “What I’d say is we’re gonna have competition. And obviously we’ve got young players we want to look at.”

It’s a long list. Again, barring injury, the top three lines will be occupied by — in no particular order — Brayden Schenn, Jaden Schwartz, Alexander Steen, Vladimir Tarasenko, O’Reilly, Perron, Maroon, Bozak and Fabbri.

In what should be an interesting subplot to the preseason, that leaves Blais in a logjam for what figure to be the final five roster spots at forward with Thomas, Kyrou, Ivan Barbashev, Dmitri Jaskin, Jordan Nolan, Zach Sanford, Nikita Soshnikov, Oskar Sundqvist and Chris Thorborn.

That’s a lot of bodies.