CAMP AT A GLANCE
	Roman Turek played well in his first year as a starter.
	Coach: Joel Quenneville '99-00 record: 51-20-11 Camp location: U.S. Ice Sports Complex (Chesterfield, Mo.) Report date: Sept. 10 Preseason schedule: Sept. 15: Chicago Sept. 16: at Dallas Sept. 19: Nashville Sept. 22: at Chicago Sept. 24: Atlanta (Lincoln, Neb.) Sept. 25: Dallas Sept. 30: at Nashville Oct. 1: at Atlanta

You would think that the team which finished with the best record in the NHL last season would go into training camp with the same personnel. Right? Not the Blues. GM Larry Pleau knows success is measured by the playoffs -- not the regular season. The Blues went out with a whimper last spring, falling to San Jose in the first round. So, Pleau went out and re-loaded during the summer.

The Blues bolstered the blueline with the signing of free agents Sean Hill and highly touted Mike Van Ryn. The Blues enter camp with more grit at forward , too, with the additions of Dallas Drake and Reid Simpson.

Here's a look at the rest of St. Louis' training camp.

Question: Enough grit up front?
With Kelly Chase gone, the biggest enforcer on this club is Tyson Nash. While the left wing is not afraid to mix it up, the 6-foot, 185-pound Nash won't intimidate anyone. Grit and toughness are key components to any championship run. Can the Blues survive without it? Can someone step up in camp and win a job? One candidate who could emerge is right wing Reed Low. The 24-year-old stands at 6-foot-3, 218 pounds and racked up 203 penalty minutes in 80 games last season for Worcester in the AHL.

The picture at the forward position also gets a little murky with the unsigned Lubos Bartecko and Michal Handzus not in camp.

Biggest position battle: Defense
The top three spots are set: Al MacInnis, Chris Pronger and Sean Hill. As for the rest? Start with Mike Van Ryn, who at age 21, should be ready for the NHL. But where on the depth chart Van Ryn belongs will be determined in camp. Marc Bergevin remains the frontrunner for that fourth spot.

A fight for the last three spots will be waged between Jeff Finley and Todd Reirden, along with rookies Bryce Salvador, Barret Jackman, Christian Backman, Jan Horacek and Peter Smrek. If, as expected, Finley and Reirden stick with the team, that sets up competition for the final spot among five rookies. Should be very interesting.

Future watch
Here, ESPN.com looks at one or two young players who could make an impact, either now or in the future.

Mike Van Ryn (Defense):
New Jersey's loss is St. Louis' gain. The Devils drafted Van Ryn 26th overall in '98, but never signed the University of Michigan defenseman. Thus, Van Ryn was ruled a free agent, free to make his own deal with any club. That's when the Blues stepped up to the plate. Van Ryn (6-foot-1, 190 pounds) has good range and rushes the puck up the ice well. He should be effective playing the point on the power play and creating havoc in the offensive end.

Barrett Jackman (Defense):
Jackman is not particularly large (6-foot-1, 200 pounds) by today's NHL standards, but is truly a mean player, averaging well over 200 penalty minutes in each of his last three seasons playing for Regina of the WHL. The bruising defenseman was selected in the first round (17th overall) in '99. He is only 19, but don't be surprised if he makes the team.

Training camp roster
Goaltenders: Reinhard Divis, Brent Johnson, Dwayne Roloson, Cody Rudkowsky, Curtis Sanford, Roman Turek, Stephen Wagner.

Defensemen: Christian Backman, Antoine Bergeron, Marc Bergevin, Vladimir Chebaturkin, Dale Clarke, Jeff Finley, Edvin Frylen, Bryan Helmer, Sean Hill, Jan Horacek, Barret Jackman, Alex Khavanov, Lauri Kinos, Al MacInnis, Jaroslav Obsut, Dmitri Plekanov, Chris Pronger, Darren Rumble, Bryce Salvador, Matt Smith, Peter Smrek, Chad Starling, Didier Tremblay, Mike Van Ryn, Matt Walker.

Forwards: Lubos Bartecko, Derek Bekar, Mark Brown, Andy Burnham, Craig Conroy, Randy Copley, Daniel Corso, Pavol Demitra, Dallas Drake, Mike Eastwood, Michal Handzus, Jochen Hecht, Kevin Karlander, Reed Low, Brett Lutes, Shawn Mamane, Jamal Mayers, Chris Murray, Ladislav Nagy, Tyson Nash, Justin Papineau, Yevgeny Pastukh, Andrei Podkonicky, Jame Pollock, Marty Reasoner, Tyler Rennette, Pascal Rheaume, Mark Rycroft, Jamie Thompson, Andrei Trochinsky, Roger Trudeau, Pierre Turgeon, Tore Vikingstad, Brad Voth, Scott Young.

Charles Avellino is a lead NHL researcher at ESPN.