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St. Louis Blues: Five Reasons the Blues Will Beat the Dallas Stars

By Todd Panula

Mar 12, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; St. Louis Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester (19) checks Dallas Stars right wing Patrick Eaves (18) during the third period at the American Airlines Center. The Blues defeated at the Stars 5-4 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 12, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; St. Louis Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester (19) checks Dallas Stars right wing Patrick Eaves (18) during the third period at the American Airlines Center. The Blues defeated at the Stars 5-4 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 14, 2016; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; St. Louis Blues right wing Scottie Upshall (10) celebrates his goal with teammates against the Calgary Flames during the first period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

The Fourth Liners

Call them what you will – Fourth line players, journeymen, grinders, role players or whatever else. The Blues have the advantage in this area.

Dallas has a heck of a scoring punch. They’ve built one of the toughest teams to defend in the league. However, after the top two lines, things aren’t quite as sparkling.

Don’t get me wrong, Jason Spezza is a great player and would be playing higher than the third line on most teams. Mattias Janmark and Patrick Eaves are decent as well but Eaves only had 17 regular season points and Janmark only has three assists in the playoffs.

That’s pretty much washed out by a Blues third line that will likely be comprised by David Backes, Patrik Berglund and Alexander Steen.

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Then comes the fourth line. Colton Sceviour, Vernon Fiddler and Travis Moen don’t necessarily strike fear into the hearts of opponents.

Now, to be fair, Steve Ott (or Ryan Reaves), Scottie Upshall and Kyle Brodziak aren’t household names either but we’ve seen what they can do. Until the big boys took hold, game 7 against the Blackhawks belonged to the Blues fourth line.

Upshall played so well that he got a social media movement started behind him. #ReUpshall. He was banging bodies, keeping the ‘Hawks in check and, if not for an inappropriately placed post, he could have scored.

Brodziak has yet to gain a point in the postseason and his regular season numbers aren’t great at first glance, but he came alive at the end of the year. Once his newborn son arrived, Brodziak was scoring goals left and right.

Ott and Reaves, regardless of who plays, need no introduction. They’re similar players. They like to scrap, they like to get under opponents skin and they like to hit. They’re not likely to score, but neither are the guys who play against them.

Beyond just the style are the intangibles. Reaves is itching to get into a game. He’s going to be a beast unleashed if Ken Hitchcock puts him out there. It would be unlike anything Dallas saw against Minnesota.

Ott has more than proven his worth to this team.

He’s proven he can lead without a C on his chest and he can show others how to give more than they thought they had.

Another factor is the punishment.  The Blues as a whole, but the fourth line in particular, like to forecheck.  If they don’t come away with the puck, they’ll put a body on someone.  The Dallas defense is almost all under 200 lbs.  That kind of punishment will wear them down, which in turn will create space later on for the skill guys.

Dallas has some great players. Players capable of winning a series on their own offensively. The Blues fourth line players have shown they can help the team win by example. Nobody would have thought it before, but they might be the missing pieces to the puzzle.

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