The St. Louis Blues needed a rebound game against the New York Rangers after their embarrassing loss to Pittsburgh. The Rangers’ future Hall of Fame goalie had other ideas though.
The St. Louis Blues found themselves in a familiar position. They were coming off an embarrassing loss, needing a rebound win to try and right the ship.
While the team came out with a solid effort, they were going up against one of the all-time best in net for the New York Rangers. The Blues had sustained pressure, especially in the second period, but it did not look like they would be able to defeat Henrik Lundqvist.
Making matters more difficult is the Blues had bad luck in the first period. They played well and even scored the first goal of the game. Unfortunately, penalties bit them again as the Rangers tied the game late in the period.
Then, the Rangers took the lead in the second period off a deflected goal. As usual, whipping boy Jay Bouwmeester was involved as he got the tip, but you can’t fault him for trying on this one. It was just an unfortunate bounce, but it does circle back to what we have been saying – if you can’t block it for sure, get out of the way. That is far easier said than done though.
Cons: Power Play
This one is so confusing. The Blues power play actually looked alright, at least compared to the total ineptitude we have seen at times from these units.
Through two periods of play, however, the Blues failed to score one power play goal on four attempts. That’s bad enough as it is, but they were going against the league’s worst penalty kill.
You have nights where things are just not clicking, but you cannot have that. If you are going against a team with a defined weakness, you have to find a way to take advantage of that, bottom line.
Again, that is easier said than done coming from people sitting in the stands or watching at home. It is what these guys are getting paid to do, though.
If you’re a decent power play team, you have to find a way to score against the worst penalty kill. We forget the Blues had a top-three power play in the league at one point in the year. That might have been awhile ago, but the talent is still there.
Sadly, we have been saying that a lot this year. Bottom line is they are not getting it done.
There were far too many shots blocked or shot wide, on the power play and at even strength. At least at five-on-five, there is the excuse of equal numbers. If you’re getting shots blocked by four guys, you’re not taking the right angles.
Additionally, the power play unit is just too predictable again. They put passes in places where guys have no option but to pass it right back, which often leads to turnovers.
Pros: Ryan O’Reilly
My family and I usually have a group text going on during Blues games. One comment made was “Man, what would it be like if O’Reilly had a supporting cast?”
What a thing to ponder, but that is all we can do. Right now, Ryan O’Reilly is pretty much a one man show.
Not only does he produce, but he is one of the few St. Louis players you can count on to show up game in and out. The third line has been good as a unit, but O’Reilly has been solid by himself, no matter who he has played with.
His goal to give the Blues the lead in the first period was a sneaky quick one. O’Reilly is not known for his shot power, but he got more than enough on that puck to get the score.
It was great work by O’Reilly and David Perron to swap the puck on the give and go. Then, O’Reilly set up on the left circle and waited for a quick pass that came right when it needed to.
He slapped it up and over the left shoulder of the goaltender. It should have been a big momentum swing for St. Louis.
It did have a positive effect on the team, but not sustained as it needed to be. Nevertheless, you cannot blame O’Reilly for a lack of effort.
He continues to lead by example and be one of the few bright spots in this murky season.
Pros: The Pressure
While it may not have paid off in the end, this is what you normally see from opponents against the Blues. St. Louis managed to look like a normal NHL team with the goalie pulled in several situations.
St. Louis had a good 30-plus seconds on the attack with a six-on-five advantage with a delayed penalty. They got great zone possession and even created a few chances. As we all know, it did not come to any fruition, but it was good to see them actually be able to keep it in the zone in such a manner.
The same could be said at the end of the game. The Blues pulled their goaltender with well over two minutes left. In normal circumstances, that would mean a 3-1 score with over two minutes left.
Instead, the Blues kept up the pressure until the very final buzzer. They kept chipping and chipping but simply could not beat one of the best goalies in the league.
There is no honor in losing, but there is no shame in actually getting beat by a great goaltender. The Blues were buzzing like bees the entire time in the third, but they simply could not jam one home.
Nevertheless, if we saw that kind of effort in the dirty areas on every night, they would have far more wins than they have. Sadly, they were not rewarded for that in this one.
Cons: Blues Lose Again Despite Outplaying Opponent
While a lot of credit goes to Lundqvist for making stellar saves and always seeming to be in position, this is a game the Blues have to find a way to win. There is no point in finding moral victories without an actual victory.
The Blues did enough to deserve a win in this one. They drew penalties, finishing the game with four power plays. That should be more than enough to take advantage of something.
They got pucks to the net. St. Louis fell just one shot shy of having 40 on goal for the entire contest. For all their efforts, they only got one goal to show for it.
As mentioned, there was a ton of pressure on net. The Blues were getting into the dirty areas with frequency and speed. Alas, it was all for nothing as they could not capitalize.
It was those little things that cost the Blues in the end. They lost a rare faceoff battle. They had far too many turnovers compared to takeaways.
St. Louis also had far too many shots blocked. The Rangers ended up with 23 blocked shots. They deserve credit for playing a solid one-on-one defensive game, but you just cannot have that many blocked. You have to find ways to create lanes or get around the defense. Instead, the Blues lost so many opportunities for even more pressure due to getting their shots blocked.
Overview
There just is not anything more to say these days that has not been said. Jake Allen played a solid game and kept his team in it, as has been the case more often than not lately. He was not rewarded.
The Blues kept up the pressure and got plenty of pucks on net. They were not rewarded.
St. Louis’ second power play unit was quite effective, especially when compared to the more talented first unit. Despite that, they were not rewarded.
That has been the story of the 2018 St. Louis Blues. They either shoot themselves in the foot or do not get rewarded for actual good play.
There were few bad individual performances and yet the team still can’t overcome a few lousy bounces. I am not sure I have seen a more disappointing team given the potential they had.
That said, this season is far from over even though the end result is almost a given. They will put together a few wins here or there – enough to make us believe something might happen.
There just is something fundamentally flawed with this group that can only be fixed in the offseason I fear. That is quite far away though.