St. Louis Blues Take Down Predators, Tarasenko Goes Howe
By Brent Scott
The St. Louis Blues (11-4-1) defeated the Nashville Predators (10-4-2) 4-3 in St. Louis tonight. The match-up and win allowed the Blues to make up for their 2-1 loss to the Predators in their prior meeting last Saturday as well as reclaim the top spot in the Western Conference’s Central Division. Both T.J. Oshie and Ryan Reaves returned to the team after time on the IR.
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T.J. Oshie marked his return with a breakaway in the first minute although Patrik Berglund missed on a good shot. At 1:56 Olli Jokinen tripped Barret Jackman to give the Blues their first power play. Around 3:25 after a little passing and a few zone losses T.J. Oshie scored a few feet from the blue line with assists from Jori Lehtera and Vladimir Tarasenko. At 3:59 Steve Ott took an interference penalty to give the Predators a chance to respond. The Predators controlled the puck but couldn’t get a shot off. At 7:11 Joakim Lindstrom took an interference penalty to allow the Predators a second power play, however the Predators couldn’t score.
During an icing call at 14:32 the linesmen were buzzed to review an earlier shot by Carl Gunnarsson, which replays showed hit the inside camera for a good goal and a 2-0 lead. Time was reset from 5:28 to 7:15 when Gunnarson made the shot. At 13:21 Filip Forsberg scored to make the score 2-1. The Blues mostly controlled the play for the rest of the period although the Predators had a few good scoring chances at the end despite being out shot in the period.
At 3:41 into the second period David Backes was called on a delayed hooking penalty but Shea Weber scored to nullify it and tie the game at 2. By the fifth minute of the second period the Predators had caught up to the Blues in shots. At 6:46 Eric Nystrom hit Tarasenko high and was called. After the play Nystrom and Ryan Ellis went after Jaden Schwartz. Tarasenko dove into the scuffle and as it appeared as though the referee had things under control Tarasenko dropped his gloves and scrapped with Ellis. Nystrom and Schwartz received roughing penalties and Tarasenko and Ellis received fighting majors giving neither team a power play.
At 7:51 Backes was called for high sticking. Steve Ott and James Neal got in to it after the call and took unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. The Predators went on their third power play of the night but the Blues killed it allowing no shots. At 13:16 Ryan Reaves received a ten minute misconduct penalty for chirping at Nystrom through and after a play. Tarasenko did what he does best at 15:18 by carrying the puck in and scoring giving him a Gordie Howe Hat Trick (Goal/Assist/Fight) assisted by Schwartz and Lehtera to take the lead 3-2. With 20 seconds left, Oshie flipped the puck over the Predators’ bench for a delay of game penalty. The Blues couldn’t kill it and with .9 left in the period Roman Josi scored to tie the game at three heading in to the third period.
The first half of the third period was much less physical than the second and was mostly back-and-forth play. At 8:42 James Neal held Alexander Steen to put the Blues on power play number two but the Blues could only take one shot. The Predators controlled a lot of the play but at 14:06 Paul Stastny scored a tip in from a Kevin Shattenkirk shot with Gunnarsson receiving the second assist to give the Blues the lead at 4-3. With a 1:20 left, the Predators pulled Pekka Rinne for a 6 on 5 advantage. Despite this, the Blues closed out the game 4-3.
I’m conflicted about Vladimir Tarasenko’s fight in the second period. On one hand, it is important for a finesse powerhouse player to make it known that his mitts aren’t just for scoring. This is especially true following the spear against Vladi in Tuesday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. It seems as though Tarasenko snapped, though he was reacting to being hit high so who can really blame him. On the other, had Tarasenko kept his cool, the Blues would have had their second power play of the night. Since they have scored four goals in their last seven minutes of power play time it seems like a good scoring opportunity missed. You can bet, though, that I was hoping for a Tank goal following an assist and a fight and Vladi did not disappoint, earning himself a Gordie Howe Hat Trick in the second. I suppose he made up for the penalty, though five minutes of no Tarasenko isn’t helpful for the Blues. One thing is for sure: Tarasenko is proving to be a dynamic player.
T.J. Oshie had a strong return following a concussion that kept him out for seven games. Oshie had an early break with a shot on goal, then later scored the first of the game. This goal broke Oshie out of his one point slump this season and his 16 games of no goals that extended back into last season. Oshie continued to drive hard for the rest of the game, which is something we will hopefully see from him throughout the rest of the season.
The Blues seem to have remedied the penalty kill problem that plagued them earlier in the season as well. This is good news because it is now difficult to find weaknesses in the team’s overall skill aside from in-the-moment errors. The Blues still allow a few too many breaks but these occurrences a more dependent on the teams they play. They allowed a lot from the last place Sabres and just few from the first place Predators, which is a little confusing.
Another great improvement is that in addition to the STL line (Schwartz, Tarasenko and Lehtera) earning points, the other lines have been making their own contributions as well. All in all, the Blues have found their groove, are at full strength and appear to have the makings to take another quality shot at the playoffs. The season should be exciting.
What are your thoughts on the game? Anywhere the Blues could improve? Anything they are doing well that I missed? Leave your comments below and let us know.