Despite All Efforts, Blues Fall 4-1 To Avalanche

Colorado Avalanche vs St. Louis Blues - Game 70 Recap
Goal: Joel Edmundson (7)
Record 37-28-5


Joel Auerbach/Getty Images                                                                            



My Thoughts on the Game

• The story of this game was the Colorado goaltender, Semyon Varlamov. He stopped 44 of the Blues'  45 shots on goal and made save after save on just about everything the Blues threw at him. 
• Despite an excellent effort in all facets of the game, the Blues just couldn't find a way to get the puck past Varlamov. 
• St. Louis outshot the Avalanche 45-23 in the game, including 22 shots on goal in the final period.
• In the first 3 to 3 1/2 minute of the opening period, the Blues top line was getting a lot of pressure in the offensive zone, but Varlamov stopped shots from Brayden Schenn, Jaden Schwartz, and Vladimir Tarasenko. 
• One attempt by Schenn was reviewed as it looked like the glove of the goalie could have been in the net when he stopped the shot, but upon review, it was clearly not a goal.
• It looked like it luck might have been on St. Louis' side when Colorado had an excellent scoring chance where the puck got behind Jake Allen in the goal crease, but rookie defenseman Vince Dunn swept the puck away to keep the game scoreless.
• The luck would change soon thereafter when Nathan MacKinnon scored at the 10:11 mark and then added another at the 13:03 mark to put the Avs up 2-0. 
• St. Louis responded about midway through the 2nd period with a goal from Joel Edmundson in his first game back since suffering a broken arm exactly 5 weeks ago against this same Colorado team. It was Edmundson's 7th of the season but it would be the only Blues goal in the game.
• Mikko Rantanen pushed the lead back to 2 goals when he scored later in the 2nd period.
• St. Louis pulled out all of the stops in the 3rd and had lots of chances including a wide open net that Vladimir Tarasenko missed that would have gotten it back to just a one-goal game.
• The Blues pulled Allen late in the game in favor of an extra attacker, but couldn't find the net.
• Rantanen added an empty-net goal for the 4-1 final. 
• The win for Colorado pushed them into the top wild-card spot and 5 points in front of the Blues. 
• There is still a possibility of a playoff spot with Dallas, Anaheim, and Calgary all in front of the Blues, but St. Louis also has a game in hand. 
• It's gonna be tough. Can they pull it off? Time will tell. If you're interested in the playoff race and didn't see my story about the teams competing for the final spots in the Western Conference, check it out HERE

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Blues Wrap Up Road Trip With Solid 4-2 Win in Anaheim

St. Louis Blues vs Anaheim Ducks - Game 69 Recap
Goals: Bortuzzo (3), Barbashev (7), Sobotka (10) and Berglund (9)
Record 37-27-5

My thoughts on the game

• Coming off their big win in LA, the Blues were looking to keep things moving in the same direction against the Ducks of Anaheim in this last game of a 4 game road trip. A win would give them 5 of a possible 8 points on the trip and would pull them within 1 point of the last wild-card spot.
• They would face a goaltender, who with his backup are on pace to set franchise records in goals against average and save percentages for the Ducks. Both tonight's starter, John Gibson and backup Ryan Miller came into the game with identical stats in both categories, 2.49 GAA and .926 save percentages.
• Coach Yeo would have been a fool to change anything from last game with the way they played against LA. So, the lineup was exactly the same. Why change anything that's not only not broken, but something that seemed to be working better than ever after scoring 7 goals against a strong Los Angeles Kings team.
• The game started with both goalies being tested on excellent scoring chances. Getzlaf had a breakaway that Jake Allen stopped and Brayden Schenn had a great chance that was blocked by Gibson. In the early going, St. Louis led in scoring chances 6-2.
• LA looked like they had a 2 on 1 breakaway after a Vince Dunn shot was blocked and caromed out to center ice, but the hustle and determination of Dunn to get back slowed the rush and the opportunity was snuffed out.
• Moments later Pietrangelo made a nice drop pass to Robert Bortuzzo who had lots of space in the high slot. The defenseman repeated his magic from the game before with the opening goal. It was his first back-to-back games with a goal in his career and he notched a new career high in goals, this being his 3rd of the season.
• The Blues forechecking in the last two games reminds me of the way they looked in the early part of the season. Their pressure has been creating chances for everyone.
• Their also getting the puck up the ice quick and attacking before the defense has a chance to set up, which is giving them lots more chances to score. 
• St. Louis added another goal 3 minutes into the 2nd period. It started on the forecheck again. Thorburn dug the puck out of the corner and kicked it out to Petro on the point. His shot deflected off Nikita Soshnikov and fell to Ivan Barbashev who knocked it in the net. It was Soshnikov's first point as a Blue. We like the way this guy plays hockey.
• LA closed the gap to 2-1 on a nice pass from Getzlaf to Perry in front of the goal. Jake didn't have a chance as Perry was in alone on the back side.
• Anaheim got a power play opportunity soon thereafter and seemed to be gaining some momentum. The Blues seemed to retreat and weren't advancing the puck as sharply and quickly for a few minutes. 
• The momentum was regained when Vladi Tarasenko skated hard at the net with the puck. He got off a backhand shot that was saved by Gibson, but #91 was tripped and fell into the goalie. The Blues got a power play opportunity and had a couple of shots on goal, the best chance coming from Sobotka who nearly snuck one past Gibson's left pad.
• 2 minutes after the penalty kill by the Ducks, Sobotka found the net. Ivan Barbashev, who has shown another level to his game recently, did a spin-o-rama with the puck along the right half-boards. He passed to Schmaltz who then found Sobotka down low near the goal. The Blues have done a much better job of getting pucks on net and increasing their presence in front. It's made a big difference.
• LA closed the score to 3-2 at the 6:15 mark of the 3rd on a goal by Grant. Jake was screened on the play and got beat on the short side. An overtime loss wouldn't help nearly as much as a win in regulation, but it looked like it could be a possibility.
• However, with 8:32 remaining the always gritty, always hustling Kyle Brodziak stole the puck on the forecheck. He found Patrik Berglund in front of the net and Bergie beat Gibson low on the glove side. It was only the Blues' 2nd shot on goal in the period. But it counted!
• 4-2 was the final. Looking at the stat sheet, it indicated an uneventful game. The SOG were just 23-22 in favor of St. Louis. Faceoffs were 51.2%-48.8%, also in favor of St. Louis. There were only 2 penalties called, one on each team. Hits were nearly even, with Anaheim holding a slight edge. The two biggest stats that made a difference were blocks. St. Louis blocked 20 shots to the Ducks' 11. Lastly, the Ducks had 16 giveaways to the Blues' 9. 
• The forechecking and defense have been outstanding. Jake has been stellar. He stopped 20 of 22 shots. In the last 3 games he has a 1.67 GAA and a .948 save %. 
• Colorado comes to town Thursday and then it's the Rangers on St Patrick's Day. 

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Who Will Make the Playoffs in the West?

It's a tight race for the playoff spots in the Western Conference. With just over a month to go, we've taken a look at the teams contending for a spot. Although we can't predict the future, we can take a look at some factors that will surely play a part in determining the 8 teams.

We've assumed Nashville, Winnipeg and Minnesota will hold on to the top 3 spots in the Central Division, and that Vegas will wrap up the Pacific without question. The rest of the spots are still very much in play. Although, with San Jose and Anaheim currently in 2nd and 3rd respectively in that division, it's their spots to lose.

The remaining 2 wild card spots are up for grabs and there are 5 teams fighting for them. I've included the Sharks and Ducks in this analysis because they could very conceivably lose those spots as only 3 points separate Calgary and San Jose with Anaheim and LA sandwiched in between.

In the facts presented below, it is current info as of Monday, March 12th. Four of the teams below play tonight. St. Louis is at Anaheim, the Kings host Vancouver and the Sharks play host to Detroit.

Also, the goaltender stats are just based on their most recent performances. As we all know, if a goalie gets hot this time of the season it can make a big difference, thus the last 5 games or so are all that we analyzed.

Pacific Division

San Jose Sharks

• Currently 2nd in Pacific Division with 81 points. 
• They have 14 games remaining, 7 at home and 7 on the road. 
• They have 2 back-to-backs still on the schedule. 
• 10 of their 14 games are against opponents who are competing for a playoff spot. 
• They are 3-2 in their last 5 games with a +6 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, Martin Jones is 3-2 in his last 5 games with a 1.72 GAA and .930 Save %.
• Thier veteran leader, Joe Thornton is on the IR as is Joel Ward.
• Chances of making playoffs seem to be nearly a shoe-in.

Anaheim Ducks

• Currently 3rd in the Pacific Division with 80 points.
• They have 13 games remaining, 8 at home and 5 on the road.
• They have 1 set of back-to-back games remaining.
• 8 of their 13 games are against opponents who are in the playoff race.
• They are 3-2 in their last 5 games with a +6 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, John Gibson is 3-1 in his last 4 starts with a 2.25 GAA and .936 Save %.
• Their chances of making the playoffs are very good.  

Los Angeles Kings

• Currently in 4th place in the division and 3rd in the wild card spot with 79 points.
• They have 14 games remaining, 8 at home and 6 on the road.
• They have 3 back-to-back sets of games remaining.
• 9 of their last 14 games will be against opponents in the playoff race.
• They are 3-2 in their last 5 games with a +1 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, Jonathan Quick is 3-2 with a 2.79 GAA and .913 Save %
• They will need to play well and hope for San Jose, Anaheim, Dallas or Colorado to falter in order to earn a spot.

Calgary Flames

• They are currently in 5th place in the division and 4th in the wild-card race with 78 points.
• They have 12 games remaining, 7 at home and 5 on the road.
• They have 1 back-to-back set of games left.
• 8 of their remaining 12 games are against playoff contenders.
• They are 2-2-1 in their last 5 games with a -1 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, Mike Smith just returned from the IR with a lower-body injury. He lost in his first game back yesterday to the Islanders where he gave up 5 goals.
• His backup, Rittich had a 3.0 GAA and .898 Save % while Smith was out.
• Their chances of making the playoffs at this stage will depend on other teams fading, and unless Smith finds his game quickly and gets red hot, I don't see them in the post-season.

Central Division

Dallas Stars

• They currently are 4th in the division and hold the first playoff spot with 82 points.
• They have 13 games remaining, 4 at home and 9 on the road.
• They have 2 sets of back-to-back games on the schedule.
• 10 of their remaining games are versus playoff contenders.
• They are 2-1-2 in their last 5 games with a -2 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, Ben Bishop has not played in a while. He is close to returning from a knee injury. Backup, Lehtonen is 1-2 in his last 3 games but has a 1.67 GAA and .936 save % in those games.
• They have the toughest schedule remaining and will need good goaltending to hang on to this spot. 

Colorado Avalanche

• They hold down 5th in the central and the 2nd wild card spot with 80 points.
• They have 14 games remaining, 7 at home and 7 on the road.
• 11 of their remaining games will be against playoff contenders.
• They are 2-0-3 in their last 5 games with a +6 goal differential.
• Their goaltender, Bernier missed 10 games with a concussion. He returned yesterday but left the game after taking a shot off his mask. If relying on the backup, Varlanov, he is 2-0-3 in his last 5 games with a 2.4 GAA and .913 save %.
• They have the 2nd toughest schedule of the teams listed here and will need to continue outscoring their opponents to hang on to the last playoff spot.

St. Louis Blues

• They currently sit 6th in the central and in 5th place in the wild-card spot with 77 points.
• They have 14 games remaining, 7 at home and 7 on the road.
• 8 of their remaining games are against playoff contenders.
• They are 2-2-1 in their last 5 games with a -2 goal differential.
• Their goaltender would look to be Jake Allen at this point. He is 1-1 in his last 2 starts and has a 1.5 GAA and .960 save % in those games. It's a smaller body of work than some of the other teams' goalies listed here, but he's getting hot at the right time for a playoff run.
• The key for St. Louis is going to be their offense. If they can continue to put the puck in the net, the schedule is a little more favorable for them than a couple of other teams ahead of them and they might just surprise some people and get to the playoffs.

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Blues Score 7! Beat LA 7-2

St. Louis Blues vs Los Angeles Kings - Game 68 Recap

Goals: Bortuzzo (2), Parayko (6), Pietrangelo (12), Barbarshev (5), Tarasenko (27), Brodziak (10), Schwartz (20)

Record 36-27-5

My thoughts on the game

• In the pre-game show, Darren Pang said, "The Blues are going to need an Academy Award performance today here in LA." Coming off a stretch where the St. Louis hockey club was just 1-7-2 in the last 10 games, they desperately needed to find their game in order to keep a 7th straight playoff appearance a possibility. 
• Coach Mike Yeo, who's been fiddling with his line combinations all season long, decided to go back to the line that once upon a time, early in the season was ranked as one of the top 2 or 3 lines in all of NHL land. I was happy to see Schenn, Schwartz, and Tarasenko back together.
• The LA Kings have been playing some good hockey and are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games, and just 4 points in front of the Blues in the race for a wild-card playoff spot. Their goalie, Jonathan Quick, although considered one of the league's best goaltenders, is just 8-11-3 versus the Blues and would not improve upon that record in this one.
• The first period opened quickly with offensive rushes and scoring chances from both teams in the first minute of play but both goalies made stops to get things started.
• Early penalties led to a short LA power play, then 4 on 4, and then a short St. Louis power play with neither team scoring. 
• That all changed at the 3:03 mark when Ivan Barbashev made a nice move along the right side half boards, spun around with the puck and found Robert Bortuzzo entering the zone near the top of the right circle. Barbie's pass was perfect and Bortuzzo's wrist shot beat Quick for an early 1-0 Blues lead.
• LA got another power play chance a couple of minutes later and Jake Allen made 2 huge saves to keep the Kings off the board. 
• The Blues earned another power play when LA was whistled for touching the puck with their hand in the faceoff circle at the 6:51 mark.
• The Kings are 2nd in the NHL on the penalty kill and kept up that pace by holding the Blues to no power play goals in 3 chances in this game. 
• However, just 2 seconds after LA was back at full strength Patrik Berglund got the puck down low near the Kings' net, skated across the crease and found Colton Parayko at the top of the right circle. Parayko buried the puck in the back of the net to give the Blues a 2-0 lead.
• The 2nd period included some saves by Jake Allen who, having played a great game 2 nights earlier in San Jose, looked strong again in net today. He commented that he has been working at staying deeper in the net which seems to be working for him. In fact, he was so deep in the San Jose game that he got his skate caught in the netting and couldn't free himself.
• LA got their first goal at the 13:13 mark when some traffic in front created a bit of confusion and a 2nd player in front, Drew Doughty redirected a pass that found its way into the net. 
• Just when it seemed that LA might have the momentum after the goal, they came on the offensive rush. With lots of bodies in front of the net and a loose puck, Schwartz managed to finally get it cleared. The Blues skated North and Alex Pietrangelo worked it in toward the net. He passed to Brodziak down on the goal line to the right of the net. Brodziak skated in front and put a backhand shot on Quick, who couldn't contain the rebound and the charging Pietrangelo poked it home stretching the lead back to a 2 goal lead at 3-1.
• LA looked like they might just be trying to get to the locker room for the 2nd intermission, but St. Louis was tasting blood and was hungry for more. Ivan Barbashev skated hard at the net, past two defenders and somehow got a shot through the legs of Quick to take a 4-1 lead.
• That goal chased the LA goalie and they turned to backup, Jack Campbell who has only played in 4 NHL games in his career, and this one was only his 2nd appearance this season.
• 26 seconds into the third, facing his first shot on goal from one of the people you wouldn't pick to face your first shot from, Vladimir Tarasenko scored on an assist from linemate Jaden Schwartz. Although he didn't get an assist, the goal was created by the forechecking of Brayden Schenn. 
• Just 32 seconds later St. Louis went up 6-1when Kyle Brodziak scored his 10th goal of the season on a nice backhander, assisted by Alexander Steen.
• Schwartz finished off St Louis' scoring on his 20th goal of the year with a little over 8 minutes remaining. He was set up by a nice little drop pass from Tarasenko as the #1 line for the Blues was clicking on all cylinders.
• LA added a power-play goal with 15 seconds left for the final score of 7-2. 
• It's only been 2 games, but if those two games are any indication, Jake Allen has found something that's been missing. When the Blues needed him most, he's stopped 72 of 75 shots faced. Only 1 of the 3 goals he allowed was at even-strength and was definitely not a soft goal. If he can keep playing like this and the Blues can find a way to score for him, a playoff appearance is definitely still in the picture.
• Referencing Panger's pre-game comments, the Blues got the Oscar Winning performance they were looking for. It was a great day to be a Blues fan! Now, let's finish off this trip with another win in Anaheim Monday night.

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Blues Lose 2-0 in San Jose

St. Louis Blues vs San Jose Sharks - Game 67 Recap
Goals: None
Record 35-27-5

My thoughts on the game

• After 4 days off, the Blues started a 3 game trip through California needing 3 wins for any hope of climbing back into a playoff spot. They sit 4 points back of the last wild card spot with just 15 games to go.
• Reading through the projected lineup earlier in the day, we all were surprised to learn at game time that Carter Hutton had sustained a neck injury late in the day and would not start. Jake Allen got the nod and the Blues recalled Ville Husso from San Antonio while Hutton is out. Tonight, they employed the emergency backup system and signed Ben Wexler as the backup for the San Jose game until Husso can join the team in LA on Friday. Wexler is a California native who played 3 years at U of Illinois where he played 26 games in 3 years. 
• Jake Allen came to play and thank goodness we didn't need Wexler. Allen stopped all 31 shots he faced at even strength. The only hole he showed was one that allowed a power play goal late in the game.
• This one started off with a lot of back and forth in the early going. San Jose is an aggressive team and plays well at home. They came out charging and the Blues had to play good defense to keep them off the scoreboard. With J-Bo out, Edmundson out and 2 rookies out there in Dunn and Schmaltz, it looked all game like the Blues had shored up the defense.
• I thought San Jose had most of the offensive pressure in the first. St. Louis didn't manage a shot on goal until about 8 1/2 minutes into the game. In fact, they only had 4 shots on goal in the first. Allen made some good saves on the Sharks' 9 shots on goal and the first ended 0-0.
• The 2nd period started out much the same. San Jose brought pressure early. Four and a half minutes in they had a nifty passing play when Tierney found Labanc in front of the net wide open, but Jake stopped the point blank shot.
• San Jose kept up the pressure and caused Vince Dunn to get called for hooking at the 4:58 mark. The Sharks got 2 shots on goal during the man advantage, but Jake made both saves.
• The 2nd period played out pretty evenly with 10 shots on goal by the Blues and 12 by the Sharks. The score remained 0-0 through 2.
• This was a cleanly played game with only 3 penalties, so the power play chances were few but they ended up being the difference in this one.
• The Blues got their chance at the 4:12 mark of the third. They had finally managed to get some sustained offensive pressure when the Sharks tackled Berglund behind the net and they were called for hooking against Brodziak.
• Disappointingly, the power play yielded zero shots on goal.
• Yeo tried to shake things up a little late in the game. The 4th line of Soshnikov, Sundqvist and Thompson wasn't seeing much of the ice, but he moved Soshnikov up on a line with Schenn and Schwartz a couple of times. No matter the combinations, the Blues just couldn't find any sort of offense. They managed 2 shots on goal in the third period. 
• At the 10:30 mark of the third, Evander Kane's stick was up under the arms of Brodziak. As Brodziak turned away from Kane, he acted as if he couldn't get his stick free and Kyle was called for holding the stick. From my perspective, Brodziak had both hands on his own stick and the only way he was holding Kane's stick was if he had a third hand. 
• There is no review of such things and the call gave another power play to San Jose. 
• The Blues managed to kill off most of this penalty. Jake was fighting hard and made some good saves. But with just 18 seconds left in the 2 minute penalty, Mikkel Boedker got the puck in the slot and surprised Allen as he got a shot off quickly and just beat Jake on his stick side off the inside of the post. It would prove to be the game-winner.
• Jake was pulled for an extra attacker with under 2 minutes to go, but the Blues found it hard to maintain possession of the puck in order to create any chances. San Jose got an empty net goal with 15 seconds left to seal the deal.
• Jake was the 3rd star and it was nice to see him play so well. His counterpart, Martin Jones was the 2nd star, but only had to stop 16 shots on the other end. 
• We blocked 23 shots to the Sharks' 18 blocks, but even adding their blocks to our shots on goal, we still didn't match their shots on goal as we were outshot 36-16. I doubt many games have been won by a team who only managed 16 shots on goal in a game and who were outshot by 20 shots. 
• The offense has disappeared in this second half of the season. Yet, as bad as it's been the season is still not over, the playoffs is still a possibility. We MUST WIN in LA on Saturday and Anaheim on Monday!

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Blues Blow Late Lead, Lose 3-2 in Dallas

St. Louis Blues vs Dallas Stars - Game 66 Recap
Goals: Barbashev (5) and Schwartz (19)
Record 35-26-5

My thoughts on the game

• With Basketball taking over the Scottrade Center for the next 2 weeks, the Blues left home for a 4 game road trip that started in Dallas and will take them to San Jose, LA, and Anaheim. All four of those opponents are in front of the Blues in the race for the playoffs, so they all are "must-win" games.
• The game started with a fight just :11 seconds in. Chris Thorburn and the Stars' Antoine Roussel were having words before the puck drop.  They managed to contain their emotions so that the game could start, but just a few seconds later, things had elevated again. When the officials regained control, both players received 5 minutes for fighting, 5 more for game misconducts, and Roussel got 2 extra minutes for being the instigator. The Blues started with a power play.
• To no avail, as the Blues' unit is a dismal 15.5%, good for only 29th in the league. They were 0 for 4 on the power play in the game. In the last 6 games, they are even worse, scoring just two goals in 23 chances for an 8.7% success rate. It's obviously been a problem all season. They even had a 5 on 3 for 20 seconds in this game and didn't score. If memory serves me correctly, they are something like 0 for 7 or 0 for 8 when having a 2 man advantage this season.
• The first period played out scoreless with the Blues having more of the better chances to put the puck in the net.
• Petro had the first good chance when a pass from Schwartz from beneath the goal line was right on target allowing the captain to wind up for the one-timer but Bishop made the save. The play was a near mirror image to the goal Petro scored in the last game.
• Alexander Steen had a breakaway and put a wrist shot at Bishop that fell to the ice a second later, but a quick whistle prevented any additional chances.
• Schenn had a steal at his offensive blue line and got in on Bishop first, but was trying to manage a bouncing puck and couldn't really put the shot where he wanted. 
• The best chance, or shall I say, what should have been the best chance came later in the period when Jaskin led a 3 on 1 break with Schenn and Schwartz. With two of the teams' top scorers on each wing, instead of passing the puck, Jaskin decided to shoot the puck and it wound up right in the chest of the big Dallas goaltender. As regular readers of this blog are aware, I don't call out players by name, but I felt like this was the first of two pretty poor decisions by Jaskin in this game. Bishop smothered the puck and no rebound was given, killing any chance of a goal on this one.
• The other play from Jaskin was another odd-man rush. This time it was a 3 on 2. With Jaskin in the middle, Schenn on the left and Schwartz on the right and the defenders choosing to pair up with Jaskin and Schenn, Schwartz looked to have a lane to the goal with nobody in between. Jaskin tried to work the puck to Schenn instead of the open man and the pass failed to connect and was broken up by the Dallas defense.
• I don't see Dimitri Jaskin as a first line player and felt that his play in this one wasn't up to par with two of our better forwards in Schenn and Schwartz.
• Dallas ended up taking the puck the other way after the 3 on 2 rush described just above, and Tyler Pitlick's wrist shot beat Carter Hutton over the blocker to give them a 1-0 lead.
• It would take 6 minutes, but St. Louis tied the game when Vince Dunn's shot rebounded out to an open side of the net where Ivan Barbashev was waiting. His 5th goal of the season was also aided by the screening effort of Steen in front of the net.
• The Blues took the lead when Schwartz raced up the left side and beat Bishop on the short side for his 19th goal of the season.
• The clock wound down and the Blues were within 3 minutes of sneaking out of town with 2 very valuable points, but Dallas wasn't finished.
• They turned up the pressure, desperate to tie things up. Captain Jamie Benn's shot from the point was high and went off the end boards behind the net. Tyler Seguin found the puck and centered it to a waiting Alexander Radulov who buried it in the twine, tying the game.
• A go-ahead goal by Dallas was waived off after a review showed the puck was kicked into the net and the game would go to overtime.
• The Blues got caught with tired legs and unable to make a change as Dallas maintained pressure in their offensive zone for what seemed like an eternity. When the Blues finally could change and get fresh guys on the ice, it meant just dumping the puck into their zone and racing to the bench. As it turned out, Dallas dominated the overtime period.
• Their comeback was complete when Benn scored his 22nd of the season at 3:04 of overtime, sending St. Louis packing with not 2, but just 1 point after they were less than 3 minutes away from stealing one. 
• Carter Hutton was strong in net and made 31 saves on 34 shots. My guess is that he will be the go-to goalie from here on in until he falters. I'm not sure where that would leave Jake Allen, but it is definitely an issue that will need to be dealt with when this season is over.
• Berglund, who was a healthy scratch in the last game and in watched the game from Mike Yeo's doghouse, got back in the lineup today as Nikita Soshnikov was sick and didn't make the trip. Bergie played 17:24, had 5 shots on goal, 2 hits and lost 1 faceoff. 
• Not to be left out of the injury report, Scottie Upshall and Jay Bouwmeester both left the game in the 2nd period and did not return with lower body injuries. 
• I imagine the team will return to St. Louis for regrouping and practice as they have 4 days off before playing in San Jose Thursday, LA on Saturday and Anaheim on Monday.  They're still in it, but everyone else who is competing for the same playoff spots don't seem to be fading, so the Blues need to find their game if a 7th straight playoff appearance will be a part of this year's story.

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB

Blues Win! Blues Win!

Detroit Red Wings vs St. Louis Blues - Game 65 Recap
Goals: Upshall (7) and Pietrangelo (11)
Record 35-26-4

My Thoughts on this game

• After a 7 game losing streak and an embarrassing loss in Minnesota the night before by a score of 8-3, Coach Yeo called out some guys who he felt weren't putting forth enough effort. It was the first time this season he has done so publicly, but I believe it was something that was necessary to get some players' attention. He backed up that talk with some lineup changes. The most noteable of which was that Patrik Berglund was a healthy scratch for this one.
• There may have been more changes if he had the personnel to use. He used who he had and here's how the lines looked for this one.
• Upshall-Brodziak-Thorburn
• Steen-Barbashev-Tarasenko
• Schwartz-Schenn-Jaskin
• Soshnikov-Sobotka-Thompson
• Defensive pairings were:
• Pietrangelo-Bouwmeester
• Gunnarsson-Parayko
• Dunn-Schmaltz
• Hutton was in net
• Something the Blues have been doing too much of lately is taking early penalties, and this one started off the same way. Upshall was called for hooking at the 3:58 mark of the first.
• Detroit's power play ranks 22nd in the league. They put 2 shots on goal with the man advantage but couldn't put one in the net. Phew!
• I found myself taking more notes in this game of guys making plays that I attribute to grit and hustle more than I have in a long time. Early on Alexander Steen fought hard to get the puck. He finally controlled it behind the Detroit net and centered to a charging Soshnikov who got a shot on goal. It was just sheer determination from Steen on the play. He continued all night, and looked to me like he left it all on the ice. 
• Soshnikov caused a penalty later in the period with his speed and aggressiveness. I LOVE the way this guy plays! I saw a tweet that summed it up about this guy:

Two things are abundantly clear about Nikita Soshnikov:
1. Why fans in Toronto seemed to love him
2. Why he could never stay healthy

— Jeff Jones (@jmjones)

• The way he skates and crashes into things and people, I hope they can harness all of that energy and keep him healthy. He's a danger to others and himself in the way he goes at it. But, I love the energy. I've heard him interviewed twice now. He says the same things, "we need to go hard on the forecheck, go back and get nasty, play with some grit, score some goals, and do it every night. That's what I'm looking for here." How could you not like this guy? He reminds me a bit of the Hanson brothers!
• Nobody scored in the first period but the Blues didn't waste any time in the 2nd. Just 1 minute and 12 seconds in, Colton Parayko, who looked like he found another gear in this game, charged hard to the net with the puck. Skating in from the left wing, he cut back in front of the net and got the puck on net. Lots of bodies came along with him, including Jaskin who had a stab at the rebound, and then came Upshall who tucked it in under goalie Jimmy Howard. 
• Howard played a good game. The 2 goals that the Blues scored could have been much more had he not played such a good game. Our hard work and net-front presence gave us lots of chances but he hung in there tough.
• The rest of the 2nd and most of the 3rd went without goals, but here were some random notes I took throughout that stretch:
• J-Bo fights off a guy trying to camp out in front of Hutton
• Parayko has found another gear, skating faster than I've ever seen
• Steen is working like a man on a mission! Possessed!
• We are putting pucks on net AND we've got bodies in front. Who is this team?
• We added another goal late in the 3rd. It was a result of nothing but grit and determination on the part of the guy who epitomizes those words, Jaden Schwartz. Schwartzy worked the puck into the offensive zone through a couple of defenders and poked it behind the net. Then he chased after it and fought until he got control of it back there. His centering pass was perfect and Pietrangelo 'one-timed' it for his 11th goal of the season. 
• With just under 4 minutes to go, Detroit pulled Howard and with just over a minute remaining Bertuzzi's shot got past Hutton over his glove side and hit the crossbar. The rebound came out to Athanasiou who put his shot in the exact same spot, but his shot was crossbar and down.
• Hutton didn't get the shutout, but the Blues held on for a 2-1 win. The win ties them in points for the last wild card spot with just 17 games to play. 

#AllTogetherNowStL #LGB