The St. Louis Blues put on an impressive showing against the Buffalo Sabres, notching their first shutout of the season, 3-0. Over their last 10 games, they hold a record of 2-6-2 for a total of six points.
Not ideal.
After the victory, head coach Jim Montgomery was asked about this recent win being a turning point, and it should be echoed to Blues fans everywhere. "(I) Can't say that yet, it's one game," he said. "We did it one game in Edmonton, and we gotta, you know, do it again Saturday."
Let's not label this team as a streaky team
Much like last season, when the Blues could not string together anything higher than a two-game win streak for almost all of the year, the same goes for this campaign. The Blues main focus is not on how many more wins they can get in a row, but on how many more games are they going to be able to win.
The damage of this early-season debacle may or may not have an everlasting effect on the rest of the season. The Blues are still at the bottom of the Central Division, and the point differential between them and a playoff position is six points. Might not seem like a lot, but the Blues just took six points out of a possible 20 over the last 10 games.
There are still too many question marks with this team. One of the big takeaways from the victory against Buffalo is where does that message of sitting Jordan Kyrou go from here? Does another player that did not do so great against Buffalo sit, and how does Kyrou fit back in with a seemingly successful lineup?
After 15 games, this should have all been figured out. But things are heading in the right direction. The things that were ailing the Blues during that seven-game losing streak are starting to fade away. Now, it is just about keeping the momentum, one game at a time. The focus is not on where this team will be at Christmas or the Olympic break, but on the next game at home against Seattle.