St. Louis Blues Morning Links: Panthers On The Prowl

Good morning Blues fans! It’s gameday again as the Blues take on the Florida Panthers for the first time this season.

The St. Louis Blues are up against somewhat of a mirror image tonight. They face the Florida Panthers.

While there are many things not similar about the teams – one has a future Hall of Fame goaltender and the other has an up and comer, one team is slightly aging and the other is transitioning from old to new guard – they are very similar in other respects.

Both teams are fighting for playoff positioning. The Blues are trying to hold onto the third spot in the Central Division and the Panthers are trying to get back into the Wild Card.

Both teams have struggled to defend this season. The Blues have rebounded to a -2 goal difference and the Panthers are still struggling at -14.

Each team has fired it’s head coach heading into 2016-17. Gerard Gallant was let go way back in November and while the Panthers have found their game a bit now, it did not have an immediate effect. On the other hand, the Blues have turned things around quickly after Ken Hitchcock’s release, going 7-2 since the change.

The Blues have to find a way to keep this change going. On the surface, it appears to be much more than just that typical post-change honeymoon.

The Blues seem looser, freer and more able to play the style of game they had envisioned when the season began. It might be disappointing they could not make that transition under a Hall of Fame coach, but it is what it is at this point.

St. Louis is doing a much better job of taking things one game at a time. Earlier in the season there was too much distraction, always looking forward to the Winter Classic or the All-Star Break or discussing Kevin Shattenkirk’s situation.

Now, there is nothing but hockey in front of them. Yes, the trade deadline still looms, but it seems like less of an ominous cloud on the horizon and more a potential avenue to improve the team.

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Tonight’s game won’t be easy though. Florida is 5-1 in February and 6-1 in their last seven. They’ve not been taking on slouches either, knocking off all three California teams and Nashville within the last week or so.

The Blues will need to be on their toes. This team is much more than just Jaromir Jagr, even though the ageless forward is still a threat.

The Blues will have to be the ones on the prowl to gain victory tonight and keep their semi-solid spot in the division.

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

In an attempt to copy the NFL model and give their teams a respite, the NHL introduced bye-weeks not long ago. The Blues one is coming up after they play the Panthers and the players are hoping to hit the break with a win. (STLToday)

The Blues will welcome back a familiar face, or rather the Chicago Wolves will. The St. Louis Blues reclaimed Ty Rattie when the Carolina Hurricanes put him on waivers and the Blues will try again with the young winger. (NBCSports)

To get a slant on the usual gameday preview, look no further than our friends over at LitterBoxCats. Their morning Caterwaul has all sorts of little goodies to take in, including some of the more interesting Twitter chatter going on today. (Litter Box Cats)

Either the number of illegal hits is increasing or the league is simply cracking down. Whatever the case, there has been an uptick in the number of hearings lately and Jacob Trouba is the latest to see the judge. (NHL)

We are still a little over a week away from the trade deadline. That did not stop the Devils and Maple Leafs from completing a deal. It might not have been anything close to interesting, but sometimes these small deals get the snowball rolling down the hill. (ESPN)

Have a great day Blues fans!