The St. Louis Blues, as well as the rest of the National Hockey League, have gone on a pause and look toward Montreal with the 4 Nations Face-off. The tournament will showcase the League's best players, and two players will be representing the Blues in this tournament, Colton Parayko and Jordan Binnington on Team Canada.
With that said, the Blues now have some time to rest up and grab a bit of a breather before the final stretch of the season. At 25-26-5, for 55 points, they still trail the Vancouver Canucks by eight points for the second and final wildcard spot in the Western Conference. They have some ground to make up, but it is entirely doable.
Let's take a peek at what the rest of this regular season looks like when they return from break.
56 Down, 26 To Go
The Blues have suited up for 56 games, and have just 26 more games to go before the season is all over. Except of course, if they sneak into the playoffs. At eight points out, they will have a tough road ahead to make up for the lost time.
Of the 26 games, the breakdown looks like this in terms of which teams they play and how many times.
Opponent | # of Meetings Left |
|---|---|
Winnipeg Jets | 2 |
Colorado Avalanche | 3 |
Seattle Kraken | 2 |
Washington Capitals | 1 |
Los Angeles Kings | 3 |
Dallas Stars | 1 |
Anaheim Ducks | 2 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 2 |
Minnesota Wild | 1 |
Nashville Predators | 3 |
Vancouver Canucks | 1 |
Chicago Blackhawks | 1 |
Montreal Canadiens | 1 |
Detroit Red Wings | 1 |
Edmonton Oilers | 1 |
Utah Hockey Club | 1 |
There are some tough match-ups, some key games with playoff implications, and some teams that may be trying to tank to the best available draft pick. What a run of games. The Central Division rivals jump right off the page, but it is the Pacific Division games that you should look out for. Those are the ones with the most teams in front of St. Louis for that final playoff spot.
All Eyes on the Pacific
For instance, Vancouver, who owns the last wild-card spot with 63 points, Anaheim, who sits just behind the Blues with 54 points, and the Los Angeles Kings, who sit comfortably in the top three of the Pacific, show up a lot on this upcoming schedule.
Having three games against the Kings could either help bolster the Blues to a higher standing or could bust the Kings out of a playoff spot altogether. The Blues cannot lose a single point to Anaheim, as they are right on their tails in the Western Conference standings. And the March 20 home-stand against Vancouver is going to be a do-or-die game for both teams.
If all goes according to plan, which it rarely ever does, the final game of the year could also have some serious implications. The Utah Hockey Club is currently tied with the Blues at 56 points, and this final game could send one team to the playoffs or one team home for the summer. What an atmosphere that is going to be at the Enterprise Center.
All of this kicks off once the 4 Nations Face-off wraps up, and the first game will be against the Winnipeg Jets on February 22.