The St. Louis Blues continued their season long seven game home stand with a game against the Ottawa Senators. St. Louis was trying to end a two-game losing streak while Ottawa is trying to stay out of the basement.
Things got off to a somewhat typical start for the Blues. They had one shot in the first three-plus minutes of the game, which is becoming more and more common.
Despite the slow start, the Blues got on the board first. Jake Neighbours kind of miffed a shot toward the net, but Cam Talbot didn’t have his stick on the ice and the Blues went up 1-0.
The period just kind of plodded along with no major actions by either team. Then Talbot struck again.
A slow, drifting puck into the Senators’ zone was tracked by Noel Acciari. Talbot should have just played it to the wall to let his defenders get back.
Instead, the Sens goalie tried to play it with his forehand to the far side. He whiffed on the puck and Acciari tapped it in to make it 2-0.
The Blues killed off an Ottawa power play late in the second. St. Louis went into the intermission up by two despite being outplayed for chunks of the frame.
Early in the third period, Neighbours got in a fight with Parker Kelly. Kelly had words with Nathan Walker in the first period and also roughed up Acciari in the second. It felt like the first fight that didn’t involve Brayden Schenn in years.
Offensively, the Blues couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. With six minutes left in the second period, St. Louis had eight scoring chances but only two shots actually on goal in that period. They had 10 shots overall. The only reason they were ahead is because the Senators goalie gifted them two goals.
St. Louis needed those two goals. A strong dump in was grabbed in the corner by Ottawa and they fed a wide open man in the slot to make it 2-1.
Ottawa came at the Blues in the third period. They has 12 shots on goal and several were high quality chances.
For their part, the Blues were not good. They were passable defensively, but they did nothing on offense other than a few breakout chances.
They had a power play late in the third period and it was just horrendous. Ottawa had two or three shorthanded shots before the Blues even got into the offensive zone on the man advantage.
St. Louis could not score on another empty net. The best they did was chip the puck out to center, but then they let the Senators back into the zone immediately. That is not an exaggeration, but Ottawa got right back in the zone with no resistance as soon as they got the puck back.
The Blues held onto a 2-1 win thanks to their goalie and the opposing goaltender.
Pros: Jake Neighbours
I still don’t quite know where this kid projects. I don’t see him being higher than a second line player at best and more likely a third liner.
Nevertheless, he’s playing with heart right now. Neighbours was one of the few players that seemed to bring it every shift.
The goal he scored was not skillful, but based on effort. He had the presence of mind to drive to the front of the net and keep his stick on the ice. He didn’t get a ton on the shot, but it just didn’t matter since he capitalized on the mistake.
The fight was pretty impressive. I have no clue what kind of pugilist Kelly is, but Neighbours definitely surprised him. A couple quick rights and then some uppercuts, as well as a strong core to not be pulled down were nice to see.
If the Blues offense would have done anything, maybe Neighbours gets the Gordie Howe hat trick. He still had a good outing.
Cons: Second period
I hate being a broken record in these recaps, but for the love of everything…why is this offense so pitiful? Whether they make it or not, this should be a playoff team.
Four shots on goal. That’s all the Blues had in the second period. Four.
That’s just not acceptable. You had a goaltender that was clearly not playing well and inside his own head after two mistakes and that’s all you muster?
Don’t tell me about the long change any more. It’s not an excuse.
You can’t even break into the zone and just toss the puck at the goalie to get a faceoff? It’s just not good enough right now.
Not hitting 10 shots in any single period in this game is bad enough. Five or fewer is just sad.
Craig Berube said he was pleased with the team’s effort in the third, so I’ll defer to him. You have to find a way to get shots through though.
Pros: Binnington
St. Louis needs to thank both goaltenders for this win. However, since thanking the opposing goaltender personally would be seen as rude, the Blues had better buy Binnington a steak dinner.
He wasn’t absolutely pelted the way that Thomas Greiss has been in some games, but he was tested. Binnington was up to the task on all but one.
Frankly, he should have had a shutout. It was just one mental gaffe by the defense that produced a nearly impossible shot to stop.
Binnington made some key saves down the stretch. The fact he had to be so on his toes when the Blues were on the power play in the third is ridiculous, but thank goodness he was. 31 saves is pretty good.
Overview
A win is a win because the Blues need points. Nashville won as well, so there is no wiggle room from teams behind and every point counts toward teams that are still ahead.
The first period was pretty decent. Eight shots isn’t fantastic, but there was some decent energy.
Why that disappeared in the second period is anyone’s guess. The Blues were not completely kept out of the offensive zone, but almost everything was wide or blocked.
If you’re going to be selective about your shots, you have to hit the target and St. Louis is not.
The power play was dreadful. The penalty kill was pretty good, though Ottawa didn’t look like the sixth best PP in the league on their one attempt.
The bottom six continues to be the best lines, in terms of effort. St. Louis relies far too much on their goalie.
It all worked out in this game, so I don’t want to be too down. However, if not for two bad plays by Talbot, you wonder if the Blues score at all.