The St. Louis Blues (27-13-3) defeated the Edmonton Oilers (10-24-9) 4-2 tonight in St. Louis. The Blues entered the game coming from a shootout win against the Carolina Hurricanes on the 10th. This victory extended their much needed win streak to 4 games.
The Oilers on the other hand have had a rough season and were last in the league standings prior to the game. Their previous game was a 4-2 loss to the Florida Panthers. The last meeting between the Blues and Oilers ended in a 4-3 overtime win for the Blues. Despite the perceived advantage, the Blues knew then as well as tonight not to underestimate their opponent.
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Tonight’s win extended not only a win streak but a few of the players’ streaks as well. David Backes has points in four games. Alexander Steen is at seven. Jaden Schwartz has eight. And Steve Ott earned his 1,400th penalty minute.
The Blues are still behind Nashville and Chicago in the Central Division. This win won’t put them closer to the Nashville Predators who are ahead by 5. However it will close the three point gap between the Blues and the Chicago Blackhawks to one in the battle for second.
GAME RECAP
It took the Blues a minute before they were able to set up in the Oilers’ zone in the early moments of the game. They recorded a few shots on goal though Edmonton had better scoring chances with their own. After about 10 minutes of play the Blues led in shots 6 to 3.
At 9:37 Steve Ott and Luke Gazdik received roughing minors to put play at 4 on 4. The teams returned to even strength without allowing a shot from either side. At 13:16 Jaden Schwartz left the game after taking a puck to the face following an offensive play. Then at 13:49 Vladimir Tarasenko scored on a shot above the dot to put the Blues up 1-0. Jori Lehtera and Barret Jackman received assists.
David Backes found himself a goal at 16:41 to put the Blues up 2-0. T.J. Oshie and Lehtera earned the assists. Then at 17:35 Benoit Pouliot took a roughing penalty. With 45 seconds left and 21 left in the power play Lehtera was sent to the box for holding the stick. Play went 5 on 4 for the Oilers with 25 second left. The Blues held them off for the remainder of the period and carried their 2-0 lead as well as some penalty kill time to the second period.
The Blues started the second period with a repaired Schwartz and on the defensive. After 1:16 the Blues ended the Oilers’ power play without allowing a shot. Then at 15:30 Scwartz deflected a shot from Jackman into the goal to boost the Blues to 3-0. Tarasenko earned the second assist.
At 8:27 Rob Klinkhammer went to the box for tripping. The Blues only managed to take one shot on the power play. Then at 12:39 Pouliot went to the box again for high sticking. The Blues couldn’t set up until after 1:30 and again only took one shot. With nine seconds left in the period Dmitrij Jaskin took tripping penalty. The Blues closed the period 3-0 leading in shots 21-8 and with 1:51 left of penalty kill time.
The Blues started the third period as they did the second, killing a penalty. They kept the Oilers down and allowed only one shot. The Oilers continued to put up some pressure but after 5:20 Matt Hendricks went off for holding. The Blues were unable to score on the power play. Shortly after, Lehtera went to the box for interference at 7:44. At 8:37 Pouliot put the puck in the net on a deflection. It went under review but was called a goal to put the Oilers on the board 3-1.
The goal gave the Oilers a boost which led to their strongest offense of the game. However at 16:26 Alexander Steen scored immediately off a faceoff to bring the Blues up 4-1. Backes earned the assist. The Oilers answered back at 17:04 after Pouliot scored his second from the slot which shortened the lead 4-2.
Following the goal the Oilers pulled their goalie. The Blues held the Oilers off and closed the game 4-2. Pouliot and Backes exchanged some shots after the horn.
HOW THEY PLAYED
The Blues have had an amazing run through the new year. After three high score wins the Blues managed to keep things going with a shootout win which alluded to a loss of scoring momentum. They played the first half of the first period slower than usual.
It wasn’t until Tarasenko put the Blues on the board (cracking his own 5 game cold spell) that the Blues reignited and assaulted the Oilers’ net. They played a precise and alert game similar to their recent big win.
Sadly, this precision was lacking during power plays. The Blues have worked their way to the number one power play team in the league. In recent games they have made their opponents pay dearly for penalties. The Blues’ own penalty magnet, Jori Lehtera, broke the first power play after he held a stick.
During the second the Blues couldn’t keep control of their passes and tossed the puck out of the Oilers’ zone a few times. In the end they went 0 for 4 on the power play which is not how the number one ranked power play team should do against the last ranked team in the league.
Jake Allen received his first start of the year following Brian Elliot’s return. He didn’t see too much action come his way and even had 17 continuous minutes of no shots. The shots he did face were tough, though and he handled them well.
I just wanted to take that time, reset a little bit, focus on working hard; and it’s paying off right now. – Jake Allen
Allen lost his edge after Elliot’s injury and the signing of Martin Brodeur. Perhaps being part of the three goalie limbo has given him some incentive to step things up. In a post game interview with Darren Pang, Allen addressed his time off: “I just wanted to take that time, reset a little bit, focus on working hard; and it’s paying off right now.”
What’s been working for the Blues recently is the fix of an early season problem. Vladimir Tarasenko dominated the beginning games of the season and the team won or lost by his production. Tonight aside, Tarasenko has recently taken less shots and become a support player.
Fortunately the other players (Backes and Oshie, especially) have risen at just the right time. All four Blues lines present a high scoring threat which denies opposing teams a chance to regroup. The Blues are deep.
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