St. Louis Blues Pros And Cons From Game 40 Vs. Philadelphia

The St. Louis Blues continue to confuse their fans with their ups and downs in 2018-19. In a turn of events, they played above their competition in beating Philadelphia.

The St. Louis Blues have shown one thing through 2018-19 – they tend to play up or down to their competition. They have beaten some of the NHL’s best and lost to some of the worst.

That said, they turned the tables for once and took advantage of a team that is struggling like themselves. In the process, they got a convincing 3-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.

What is more, the Blues actually got a decent performance for a full 60 minutes. I would not say it was great for the full hour’s worth of gameplay, but it is as close as we might have seen in a long time.

St. Louis and the Flyers went scoreless through the first period, but it was a back and forth affair with both teams getting their fair share of chances. Big saves from both goaltenders were required to keep the goose eggs on the board.

Brayden Schenn continued his run of hot play knocking in another rebound goal. Jordan Binnington kept sharp, despite a lack of work after the first period.

The Blues got a pair of goals in the third to ice it. Vladimir Tarasenko broke out of his funk with a vintage Vlady wrist shot.

St. Louis also got a rare empty net goal as David Perron put the finishing touches on the game.

It was a rare game in many ways. The Blues got an empty netter, as mentioned, were the beneficiary of a bad call instead of having it go against them and beat a team they should beat.

Cons: More Injuries

Right after the Blues announced they had a fully healthy team, they start dropping like flies again. This time, the Blues lost Alexander Steen for who knows how long.

Steen left the ice in the first period and never returned. He left with the dreaded upper-body injury, which can mean just about everything.

Of course, we were all left to wonder if it was another concussion, which is something Steen has had issues with. Later in the game, it seemed to switch to more of a shoulder injury, according to some reports.

Regardless, it couldn’t have been much worse for timing. The Blues, foolishly, only dressed 11 forwards to start the game as part of this ridiculous trend of having seven defensemen. So, in a way, they got what they deserved, even though none of us truly wanted it to work out this way.

As we know now, it ended up working out, but it makes for more tired bodies come tomorrow night since several players had to double shift on top of the double shift they would have had on the fourth line already.

Pros: Jordan Binnington

Despite what the uninitiated want to believe, Jordan Binnington was not spectacular in his debut, but he did not have to be. He did what you want any goaltender to do, starter or backup – he made the stops he should and a few he should not have.

Binnington was more than deserving of his first career shutout. He came up with some big saves, including a heck of a toe save in the first period.

After that, Binnington was just solid throughout. He was not heavily tested, but he was steady, stopping 25 shots in total.

The Blues’ defense deserves some credit too, blocking 15 shots in front of their rookie teammate. That takes nothing away from a really good performance by Binnington.

He looked calm and confident. Some goalies look nervous in their first starts, but he had the confidence of someone that had been there, even if he hadn’t.

Cons: Faceoffs

Ok, so we are being picky here. It’s my article, so nyah.

When you win 3-0, there is not much to complain about, especially when you dominated most facets of the game. That said, it was concerning to see the Blues lose so many faceoffs.

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Some of it might be due to the double shifting, but some of it was just poor timing. These things happen, but not usually in the numbers they did on this night.

St. Louis ended up losing 61% of their draws. It clearly did not hurt them in this case, but as we have seen in previous years, an inability to win faceoffs at key times can cost you.

What is more concerning was the fact that their base faceoff takers were, statistically, their worst in this game. Ryan O’Reilly only won 33% of his faceoffs.

Again, this is admittedly being picky, but you need your best players to win those battles. With Tyler Bozak out of the lineup, the Blues returned to a mediocre faceoff team with O’Reilly having a rare off night.

Pros: The Top Line

Jaden Schwartz continues to struggle offensively this season, despite his one assist on the game. Even so, he was part of one of the more dynamic offensive showings we have seen from this trio all season long.

The way this top line was playing right from the start, you knew good things just had to happen. They were skating well, making good passing decisions and actually taking shots. Even though Schwartz was not rewarded, he had a good shoot-first mentality.

Tarasenko ended his five game goalless drought with his patented snapper. On top of that, he had come close several times earlier in the game as well. If we could just keep him playing like this game, you’d likely see a goal every other game or close to it instead of the large gaps.

In addition, Schenn kept up his hot play. His ninth goal was his second in as many games, though he too was coming off a long pointless streak.

The funny thing is the timing of all this. Schenn and Tarasenko seem to be getting on the same page right as the trade rumors surrounding Schenn are heating up.

In all likelihood, 10 might be gone in a few weeks. So, in a sense, the hot streak is good for any return the Blues might get. It also rubs salt in the wound of these talented players not being on the same page the entire time.

Fingers crossed we can see more nights like this from these three. Given the way this year has gone, I would not count on it.

Overview

This was a nice, solid, fun win. It was another example of what this team could and should be, but has not been consistently.

For once, they had the game in their hands from the very start. Of course, the Flyers had a few moments here and there where they could have gotten into it, but you just had a rare sense the Blues were in control and might not give it up.

You cannot deny that some of it had to do with goaltending. But that is just as much the team playing for a guy in his first game with family in the stands as it is actual great goaltending.

That is not taking anything away from Binnington, who should get all the credit he deserves. People need to pump the breaks though.

As well as the Blues played, they were still only up by a goal with plenty that could go wrong in the third period. They had a rare bit of fortune, too, when the Flyers power play lasted less than a minute before O’Reilly drew what was likely not a penalty.

So, as with every win we encounter now, just take it for what it is. It was a fun game to watch and a good performance all around.

We will see what the next game brings.