St. Louis Blues Morning Links: Blues Filibuster The Ottawa Senators
By Todd Panula
Good morning Blues fans! We have a rare winning streak going for our beloved hockey team. They are not fixed by any means, but there is no doubt St. Louis has been better since the coaching switch.
The St. Louis Blues actually looked like the St. Louis Blues we remember from last season against Ottawa. While the team could not score in the first period, they still managed to look like a team in control the entire way. By the end, the Blues went all Emperor Palpatine on the Senators.
The Blues exploded in a rare showing of offensive prowess. Even last year when the team was cooking, they didn’t always have blowouts the likes of which we saw against Ottawa.
Six goals is nothing to sneeze at and the Blues did it with ruthless efficiency. Six goals on 30 shots works out to a goal every five shots. Not too bad for a team that has struggled to find any kind of consistency.
Additionally, St. Louis got some goals from important people. Vladimir Tarasenko ended his two game pointless streak, Patrik Berglund got his name back on the scoresheet, Magnus Paajarvi (of all people) got a goal and Ivan Barbashev scored his first ever NHL goal.
On top of that, Kenny Agostino continued to ease fears. He was a consistent player again and assisted on the Berglund goal to make it two points in two games.
The question now is whether this is something the team can sustain. We have seen this sort of thing in the past only to be let down with the incredibly bad Blues showing up one night.
Can we really trust them now? Maybe the team has had enough with our disturbing lack of faith.
It’s up to the team to start proving us wrong. When the most loyal and positive among us are wary, you know it has been a trying year.
On the positive side, we seem to be witnessing a resurgence of the goaltending. While the position was never at fault as much as many want to believe, both Jake Allen and Carter Hutton were having a rough go of it.
Related Story: Blues Might Deal Goaltender Sooner Rather Than Later
Now they have pitched back-to-back shutouts. That’s a rare feat in and of itself, let alone how things have gone in 2016-17.
Allen looks much calmer and in control. He is now making the saves he has to and also getting the ones he might not have gotten just a month ago.
If the Blues can get goaltending like we have seen the last couple games, they will be fine to make their playoff push. Clearly the team plays with more confidence if they don’t have to worry about what is going on in the crease.
Here are your St. Louis Blues Morning Links to get your day started off right.
Perhaps it is the result of a 24/7 news cycle or perhaps it is just more is demanded of playing conditions in the best hockey league in the world. (Maybe it has to do with global warming). Whatever the reason, ice conditions have become a big topic among the players in the NHL. In an effort to see what is working and what is not, the league has been having post game surveys. (The Score)
Some people were fortunate enough to see the Centennial Fan Arena when it made it’s way to St. Louis. Others missed it. And others still went down and were told they missed the cutoff in the line…*coughBScough* For those that did not see the inside of the truck, here is a brief video of the entire setup for the event. (InsideSTL)
We always see things through one particular lens due to the fact the Blues are our team. Sometimes it’s interesting to get the other perspective. With that in mind, there was a familiar tone to the Ottawa side of things that Blues fans might relate with. (Ottawa Citizen)
The Boston Bruins are in a similar situation to the Blues with their coaching switch. The pressure has now been placed on the players and GM, which is the same as in this town. The biggest difference is Boston did not have a coach-in-waiting, but must still get wins. (NHL)
While there has been no talk of NHL expansion in some time, there are always interested parties looking for an angle. The latest is the governor or Connecticut hoping to lure either a new team or current one back to Hartford. (ESPN)
Have a great day Blues fans!