It’s amazing how quickly things can turn. Brian Elliott was seen as superhuman for almost the entire postseason. One human performance and the wolves are out. Now is not the time for the St. Louis Blues to make a change though.
Brian Elliott has earned the right to start in Game 7 against the Dallas Stars. That is not to say it isn’t fair to at least have an honest discussion about starting Jake Allen. For Game 7’s, you have to explore every single option or you are doing a disservice to your team.
There are reasons to at least ponder making a switch. While arguments can be made on either side for who is the better pure shot stopper, Allen is far and away the better stick handler.
If Ken Hitchcock thinks he’s going to get into a situation where the Stars are going to dump it in all game, then going with the Snake might be a reasonable decision. Allen jumpstarted several Blues rushes in Game 6 due to his ability to handle the puck and make accurate passes. Elliott is not great in that aspect.
However, outside of that, there is only one reason to even ponder starting Allen. The Stars clearly have a gameplan against Elliott.
Whether that was the scouting report on him beforehand or not, ever since the Stars dinged Elliott in the mask they have shot everything up high on him. He’s been able to fend them off until Game 6 where he was just in positions where he was unable to come up with the big save he’s become synonymous for recently.
The argument against that argument, though, is just about every NHL goaltender is susceptible up high. Allen has a good glove hand, but even he got beat up high on a Stars breakaway late in Game 6. His saving grace was it rang off the crossbar.
Additionally, though Allen deserves credit for helping the Blues’ comeback attempt, it wasn’t though he was called on often. Allen made some big, timely saves, but the Blues just played better. The Snake only had to face 7 shots in two periods of play.
All of that said, a motivated Elliott, at this stage of the game, presents the St. Louis Blues their best chance to win.
Unlike the Stars, where you could flip a coin and get the answer to who may have been in net prior to Game 5, the Blues have been rock solid in net. There was a tiny bit of a question whether to start Allen in Game 7 against Chicago, but the circumstances were different.
The Blues were coming off two consecutive losses and Elliott honestly looked fatigued following the double overtime loss in Game 5 against the Blackhawks. You couldn’t afford to have a tired goalie in against the defending champions.
Elliott didn’t look tired against Dallas. He just didn’t look himself. He looked average. When you’re given no proper defensive help early in the game and you don’t have your A+ game, the opponent will take advantage and the Stars did just that.
Elliott bounced back in Game 7 against Chicago though and there’s no reason to think he won’t in Dallas.
The team already seems focused on playing better for their goaltender.
Shattenkirk on Elliott: "He deserved better. We're going to give him better." #stlblues
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) May 10, 2016
Shattenkirk’s quote about the Elliott deserving better and the Blues going to give him better is a good start. At least the defenders are aware they’ve left him out to dry a bit too often. They had better come up big though because St. Louis has allowed Dallas too much life.
Despite the Blues being the better team, despite Elliott being the better goaltender in every game except the last one, Dallas has gotten this thing to a seventh game. That’s dangerous. They’ve also found momentum and belief.
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They also have Patrick Eaves back and the slim hopes of Tyler Seguin coming back as well. Those are more weapons for an already talented team who has proven they can hang even without them.
Even so, the Stars know the quality of Elliott. He may have lost some of the mystique, but Jason Spezza knows the Stars got a few breaks in addition to making Elliott looking human.
“We just made some good shots,” Spezza said. “That’s a great shot by Matty Janmark on the first goal, Fiddler drives the net, gets a perfect tip on it, I get a little break on my goal, make a good play, but we didn’t feel like he was shaky at all.”
He wasn’t shaky, but he wasn’t allowed to settle into a grove either. The Stars scored two goals on their first three shots. That would send any goaltender into a bit of a spin.
That doesn’t mean it’s not Elliott’s series to win.
Allen is a terrific goaltender. He is still likely the future of this team. He has come up big for the Blues and earned his spot last season against the Minnesota Wild. It just didn’t pan out, but Elliott would not have been the difference.
This season, Elliott has earned his spot. Maybe it won’t pan out, but when looking back over this series if theh Blues fail to come up with a winning performance, the loss can’t be pinned on goaltending again.
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Elliott has done too much for the Blues to even get to this point to give up on him now. Pulling him in Game 6 was as much of a mental break for him as it was an attempt to boost the team.
“This isn’t a reflection on Brian,” said Hitchcock regarding the switch. “Guy’s had a hell of a March, hell of an April and hell of a May.”
Hitchcock was noncommittal when pressed about naming his starter after Game 6. It’s going to be the Moose. It has to be Elliott.
Allen’s time will come. It’s just not right now. Elliott is going to rebound. He’s going to have a monster Game 7 again. There’s no reason to switch at this point. The team in front of Elliott just can’t have another bad 20 minutes.