The St. Louis Blues were supposed to go away after seemingly selling off at the NHL trade deadline. They weren’t supposed to string a 6-2-2 mark in their last 10 games. And they certainly weren’t supposed to close in on a playoff spot in the final stretch of the season.
But here we are.
Friday night’s 6-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks gave the Blues 76 points on the season. That total put the St. Louis within striking distance of a postseason berth.
Dylan Holloway’s two goals and Joel Hofer’s 25 saves propelled the Blues to the victory. While it’s not surprising that Holloway and Hofer would play well, it’s surprising that the Blues didn’t sink to the bottom like a stone in a lake.
The Blues jettisoned several veteran pieces at the deadline. But they didn’t dump their best players. And it’s those best players that have stepped up since. For instance, Robert Thomas had a goal and two assists against the Ducks. Philip Broberg had two helpers. Even Colton Parayko, who famously nixed a trade deadline deal to Buffalo, had two points on the night.
Despite plenty of question marks still surrounding the club, the Blues are not looking like the team everyone knew they were at the beginning of the season. They’re getting red hot at the right time. That’s no bueno for the rest of the Central Division and the Western Conference.
Who knows, a continued push could catapult the Blues in a second-straight season in which they meet the Presidents’ Trophy winners in the first round.
NHL trade deadline likely took a weight off Blues’ shoulders
For a lot of teams and players, getting past the NHL trade deadline is like taking an 800-pound gorilla off their backs.
The main reason for that assessment lies in the fact that the uncertainty and the question marks surrounding potential deals and whatnot have taken a heavy psychological burden on a team.
But once the deadline comes and goes, there’s really no weight pulling the team down. Sure, trade discussions may ensue in the offseason. But in pro sports, the difference between playing and the offseason can seem light-years away.
It seems that the passing of the trade deadline liberated the Blues. The team is playing with much more confidence. Most importantly, they’ve been getting solid goaltending. Hofer, for instance, is quietly having a great year. He’s played in 41 games, winning 20 to go with a 2.58 GAA and a .910 SV%.
The 25-year-old has won three of his last four starts. The two losses were a 31-save performance that the Blues dropped in the shootout against the Calgary Flames on March 18. His lone stinker in that span was a five-spot the San Jose Sharks scored on him in the Blues’ 5-4 loss on March 30.
That game, in particular, was one St. Louis could have won. The Blues rallied to tie the game midway through the third, but ended up losing on a back-breaking goal with less than 30 seconds to go in the game.
A full season of such kinds of efforts could make the Blues a contender in the West. That may be the next case next season. But for now, it seems as though St. Louis will be making things interesting heading down to the wire.
The Blues’ season will likely come down to the home-and-home series with the Colorado Avalanche. Two wins could make life miserable for the clubs ahead of them in the Western Conference playoff race.