The St. Louis Blues seemed like they had turned a corner after winning three games in a row. Their loss to the New York Islanders showed how little any of that means.
The St. Louis Blues find themselves in an odd position for the rest of the 2018-19 season. Everything is so on the edge of a knife that even playing well is no longer good enough.
That is exactly what happened after their game against the New York Islanders. The Blues had finally won three games in a row and found themselves within three points of a playoff spot.
However, there were almost twice as many teams as points they needed to hurdle. So, the Blues knew they had to keep winning and amassing points to keep on the positive track.
Thus, losing in overtime in Brooklyn almost felt like the old-school tie. You hang your hat and shrug saying you got a point, but it really does not feel like an accomplishment.
The problem becomes that the Blues played well. This was a far cry from earlier in the season when each loss just seemed like the end of the world. This was the kind of loss we had been crying out for, where the team played their guts out and just got bested by a hotter team.
That is basically what happened. The Islanders had the hotter goaltender and got the bounces – neither New York goal was anything you would write home about.
But, since the Blues no longer have the luxury of saying they played well and came up short, it takes on more negative significance. The point is important but disrupts the groundswell of positivity that had quickly risen up around the team.
It does not stop all that goodness in its tracks, but it was definitely stopped short.
Cons: More Injuries
The St. Louis Blues have been hit pretty hard by injuries in 2018-19. In the grand scheme of things, it probably is a rather small excuse, if any excuse, but it definitely has an affect on the team.
The issue when injuries arise within a game is the lack of continuity with lines. Even when you change the lines from game to game, you at least have the pregame to get used to the idea.
That is not the case when someone suddenly goes down. Instead of getting in a grove, guys get double shifted and placed with new line mates out of the blue.
So, you might play one shift with the second line, go to the bench for some rest and then play another shift with the fourth line. It is just another wrench in the plans of the Blues this year.
To start, Oskar Sundqvist got knocked out in the first period. Sundqvist has been one of the hottest players for St. Louis, so losing him so early in the contest was a blow. Not only did they lose his potential production, but they lost his effort level as well even though he would return to the game after the first intermission.
Then, later in the game, Zach Sanford had to be helped off the ice. Being injured is bad enough, but it can shake up teammates when they see you struggle to the locker room.
Sanford has been in and out of the lineup, but it is another disruption to the roster at a time when the Blues needed to be focused on trying to win the game.
Pros: A Sudden Fiestyness
Over the past few seasons, there has been an odd consistency with the Blues. For some reason, they tend to show a more vicious and tenacious side when they play Eastern Conference teams.
That is exactly what happened with the Blues against the Islanders. They showed a physicality and angry side that we have rarely seen at all in 2018-19.
Guys that you wanted to put out that kind of effort all year finally did. Pat Maroon was constantly mixing it up and giving people the business and facewashes.
There were several scrums throughout the game with a lot of pushes and gloved punches thrown after the whistle. It was not quite a throwback to an older time, but it was almost as close as you will see this side of the playoffs.
The one thing I have always found odd is the difference. In the older days, it was the complete opposite.
It used to be that rivalries always produced these sorts of results and the placid games were the nonconference games. Now, it seems just the opposite.
The Blues seem to mix it up with the teams out east much more. At this point, we will take what we can get.
Cons: Not Getting The Bounces
The Blues did not play well enough to say they should have won. However, they did not play poorly enough to say they deserved to lose – quite the opposite in fact.
Though the Islanders were the hotter team and had a hotter goaltender, they really did not quite deserve the result they got. Both of their goals were quite fortunate.
The first goal, there was a question of goaltender interference. Ultimately, it was ruled a good goal, but from a St. Louis perspective, there was still a little to feel uneasy about.
Jordan Binnington had his left skate planted against the post. The initial Islander jammed enough to push the pad away and get Binnington off balance. Jordan Eberle then took the loose puck and backhanded it in. By rule, it is understandable why it was not interference since the puck was always right there and forwards have a right to it. Still, it feels like typical Blues luck to not benefit from a 50/50 call.
Then, the second goal was very similar to what so many fans have had a problem with Jake Allen. In overtime, a shot came from the right circle and managed to slip through the body of Binnington. You could tell he felt awful about it by his reaction, but it was a save he had been making throughout his previous three wins.
It is a goal you see dozens of times in any season, so there is little real blame to place on the goaltender. However, when you suddenly become accustomed to having your netminder stop those shots, it is more jarring when they go in.
It’s especially a kick in the gut when the Blues really needed to get the win to keep their momentum going.
These things happen in any season, even when things are going their best. When you need everything to go right, a larger spotlight is there to shine on it when things do not go right.
Pros: David Perron
This guy, David Perron, just keeps finding ways to get the puck in the back of the net. Some goals are highlight reel worthy and some are just going in by sheer will.
His goal against New York was somewhat of both, mainly due to the determination of Ryan O’Reilly.
A slightly weak pass into the zone forced O’Reilly to win a battle in behind the net. O’Reilly quickly reversed course and fed Perron in front.
Without hesitation, the French-Canadian whipped one past the goaltender and tied the game. Some of it was good fortune as there was such a small window for that puck to actually go in. Much of it was quality, however, as Perron has been on a tear of late.
Perron has found another level and is finally showing the promise that so many saw in him all those years ago. It took going to three other teams for him to finally find it, but he is living up to what we thought he could be.
Not only is Perron scoring goals at will, but they are important goals, not just garbage time scores when your team is already up by three. This came at a gigantic point in the game when the Blues just had to have a spark and got one.
Overview
This is such an odd game to put a finger on. On one hand, you have to be happy the Blues kept their point streak alive and kept things progressing forward. On the other hand, you have to be disappointed that this game did not go their way since it was within their grasp to win.
This kind of result should be fine. The team played well, overall.
You’re going to have these kinds of results within any season. Even the best teams of all time have not gone undefeated or even had a second half of a season undefeated.
But, as mentioned, when you have forced yourself into a spot where everything must go right, it is that much more devastating when it does not. When you have a game there for the taking and you cannot, it has that much more of an impact.
Maybe, weeks from now, we will look at this game and see the point gained as a net positive. Right now, like the ties of old, it just feels like a let down and makes it harder to see the positives even though there are some there.