St. Louis Blues Morning Links: The Devils Went Down To Clark Avenue

Good morning Blues fans! It’s time for another game day as the New Jersey Devils come to town and we are all hoping the end result is as filled with good feelings as the last time.

It was not too long ago that the St. Louis Blues took on the New Jersey Devils. It was six days ago, to be exact.

How quickly things can change in such a short span. Following a meh, but not terrible performance against the Islanders, we thought the Blues had things figured out as they took the Devils behind the woodshed.

Unfortunately, two straight losses smacked the Blues in the face after they left Newark. They weren’t exactly losses that left any of us feeling that old “well, we were close” or “they gave their best and it wasn’t good enough on the night” feelings either.

Now, the Blues have two things going for them as they look to turn it back around. First, they already know what it takes to beat New Jersey.

In a rare showing of offense, the Blues bombed away. They outshot New Jersey 32-21 in that game.

Additionally, St. Louis only allowed four shots in the third period, meaning they actually know how to put the clamps down at times. So, in theory, the opponent could not come at a better time. Unfortunately, we know how theories pan out sometimes.

The second thing the Blues have going for them is they are returning home. St. Louis has only lost one game in regulation at home with a current 12-1-3 mark.

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The last game the Blues dropped at home was a shootout decision to Winnipeg on December 3. Before that, the last loss was an overtime loss to Chicago on November 9.

For whatever reason – none of us are complaining – St. Louis has turned Scottrade Center into a fortress. It’s a far cry from just last season when many of us wondered if having home ice in the playoffs would even be an advantage.

So, all the pieces are lining up for a big performance and a win for the Note right? Let’s not put that in pen quite yet.

I’ve never thought of myself as a pessimist, but I just never trust these scenarios. The Devils have lost three in a row and only have four wins on the road.

Somehow those are the games the Blues usually get too full of themselves and let the opponent have too much space to take advantage of. Hopefully that won’t be the case tonight.

Here are your St. Louis Blues Morning Links to get your day started off right.

In case we didn’t cover enough up above, Jeremy Rutherford has your particulars for tonight’s game including injuries and miscellaneous streaks. (STLToday)

Those of us that follow the team day in and out have always known we have a special place held for guys that play their butts off, regardless of skill. Ryan Reaves is one of those guys that we love. Ben Hochman is rather new to the scene, so we’ll give him a pass for joining the party a little late. (Post-Dispatch)

Thanks to several guys Blues fans would like to see make the jump to the big club someday, the Chicago Wolves have slowly, but surely turned their season around. The Blues AHL team got points in all three games last week. (Wolves)

The NHL continues to roll out it’s plans and festivities revolving around the league’s 100th anniversary. Now it includes a list of the best players and traveling sights. (NHL)

Those of us that got sick of the sight of the LA Kings following those playoff battles had hoped they’d be in the tank with the injury of Jonathan Quick. Sadly, they are hanging in there and Quick is on schedule to return this season. (ESPN)

Have a great day Blues fans! Don’t forget to check out the first part of our 12 Days of Bluesmas series.