The St. Louis Blues were able to pick up a big point against Central Division rival, the Dallas Stars by forcing overtime. Unfortunately, they were unable to stop Matt Duchene and his incredible hands and speed and lost 2-1.
Tonight, they travel back home to take on an Original Six team that has been on a downward spiral as of late. The New York Rangers enter Enterprise Center with a 3-7 record over their last 10 games. They are also on the second of a back-to-back with the Los Angeles Kings, and it was a complete disaster for the Blueshirts.
Let’s preview tonight’s matchup.
Don’t underestimate your opponent
The Blues, 14-14-3 for 31 points, take on a team that is in somewhat of an identity crisis in the Rangers, 15-13-1 for 31 points. Rewind two weeks ago and the expected outcome of these two teams would be flipped. The Rangers were headed toward another run at the Presidents’ Trophy, and the Blues were still finding themselves as a whole, with no playoff hopes at all.
But despite all the negatives surrounding the Rangers at the moment, they should not be underestimated. In all likelihood, they will figure it out and turn things around, it’s only a matter of time, but let it not be tonight against the Blues.
New Blues defenseman Cam Fowler fit in quite nicely in last night's game, especially on extremely short notice. Alongside Justin Faulk, he was on the ice for 17:57 and got a shot on goal. He even saw some time on the penalty kill.
Three things to watch for tonight for the Blues is the continuation of goaltender Jordan Binnington’s greatness last night. He is the sole reason for the Blues gaining a point. Another thing to watch for is improvements in the faceoff dot, as they were a horrific 37.7% against the Stars. Finally, look to see if there are any changes or sparks to the power play. that was another soft spot in last night’s game.
The puck drop will be at 5:00 PM CST.