St. Louis Blues: Top Lines Really Clicking

Much has been made about the St. Louis Blues and their lineup. What fans fail to realize is that every coach juggles lines and almost every fanbase is upset about it. The important thing is to stick to a good thing when you see it clicking.

That’s what the St. Louis Blues are doing right now and it is paying dividends. There have been other lines that clicked for awhile, until they didn’t.

Paul Stastny was working very well as the top line center with Vladimir Tarasenko at the start of the year. Unfortunately for him and for the Blues’ offense, injuries really derailed a lot of cohesiveness.

The injuries, coupled with some inconsistent play, almost necessitated the line changes. For a long stretch it seemed that every time coach Ken Hitchcock found a combination that might work, someone else would get hurt.

Now, for the first time in a long time (perhaps all season), the Blues have almost their entire lineup healthy and intact.

Of course you now have the resurgence of the STL line, comprised of Jaden Schwartz, Tarasenko and Jori Lehtera, but we knew those three could play together and succeed. No, the line that has benefited the most was probably the unlikeliest combination.

The FBS line of Robby Fabbri, Troy Brouwer and Stastny has been a force in recent weeks. Stastny had five points in his last six games, Brouwer has six points in the month of March and is a +4 and Fabbri has five points in his last five games to go along with his 17 goals thus far in his rookie season.

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While this would not have been a combination people could have predicted at the start of the season, it seems to be a trio that needs to stay together heading into the postseason. It really is an old-school type of line.

You have the playmaker in Stastny, the slick scorer in Fabbri and the grinder who can score but isn’t afraid to get dirty in Brouwer. That’s how lines used to be constructed.

Think back to the days of the Penguins. Now, by no means am I comparing the FBS line to these names but Jaromir Jagr was the scorer, Mario Lemieux was the playmayker and Kevin Stevens was the man who did the ditry work.

These days you don’t normally get those kinds of combinations because there is a propensity to put similar types on one line. Your top line will be mainly scorers, your second line might have a bit more of a mix, the third line is mostly grinders and then the fourth line is your enforcer line.

It’s good to see that mix again. Even more than just the production of the FBS line, the lines as a whole look comfortable with each other.

Players are starting to know where the other is on the ice. Look no further than the goal Fabbri scored against the San Jose Sharks. Blame Martin Jones for the end result if you want, but Brouwer had good vision and a knowledge of where Fabbri was going to be and flipped the puck along the boards knowing his linemate was going to get to it.

If Fabbri didn’t score or wanted to pass, Stastny was in perfect position to pick up a rebound or provide the pass on the two-on-one.

Even by the most lenient fan’s judgement, the Blues offense has not produced enough this year. Through 74 games, the team only has 195 goals. That’s seven less than Nashville, 10 less than Chicago and 47 fewer than Dallas. Even with all that, the scary thing is the potential of this team if they can go into the playoffs fully healthy.

Until the 1-0 win over San Jose, the Blues had actually scored three or more goals in every game since February 27. Their top lines are clicking and producing. Tarasenko has hit his stride. The FBS line is gelling.

*On a side note, I propose someone come up with a nick name for Stastny that starts with an “I” so I can call them the FBI line. Inspector Stastny? Hmm, I dunno. Probably needs work. Anyway.

If Alexander Steen gets a few regular season games to gel with David Backes and Patrik Berglund, then the Blues could have three lines capable of scoring at any point. Even the fourth line is creating chances. If not for Ryan Miller, the fourth line of the Blues might have had one or two goals against Vancouver.

Next: Paul Stastny: Jekyll and Hyde

That’s something we’ve heard about and glimpsed every so briefly, but never had at the right time of the year. This is the right time of the year. The Blues are not a star driven team even with Tarasenko.

They are the sum of their parts and they need all those parts. For the first time in what seems like forever, the Blues might not only be healthy going into a playoff series, but firing on all cylinders.

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