The St. Louis Blues entered their 79th game of the season with 12 consecutive wins in their back pocket. That was the most they've had all season and the most in franchise history.
Stretching it to 13 would be tough because they were against the team with the most points in the NHL. The Winnipeg Jets have been hard to beat at home, too, so St. Louis was up against it.
For whatever reason, the Blues did not lack effort, but they did lack execution. The Jets were a big part of that, giving St. Louis nothing.
The Blues only mustered three shots. On top of that, St. Louis had very little zone time.
The Blues were facing the likely Vezina Trophy winner and could barely make him do anything. Nevertheless, St. Louis and Joel Hofer kept the game scoreless into the intermission.
The second period was a nice difference for both teams. The Blues came out with a solid push, and Radek Faksa almost gave the Blues the lead, but was denied with a skate save early in the frame.
St. Louis seemed like they were coming, but as happens against good teams, mistakes end up in the back of your net. With the Blues establishing themselves in the offensive zone, they tried a give-and-go near the blue line, but Mathieu Joseph turned it over, and the Jets would sneak one past Hofer's blocker 2:34 in.
While the Blues offense wasn't hot, it was at least respectable. Unfortunately, despite a pretty good push here and there, they kept just missing or allowing Connor Hellebuyck an opportunity to slide over and kick out his long legs.
Nevertheless, the Blues would tie the game. At 7:37, the top line continued to be red hot.
Robert Thomas found another seeing-eye seam pass from the goal line to the front. Pavel Buchnevich got enough on the puck to slip it off the goaltender and in to make it 1-1.
The Blues just never really established themselves for long enough after that. They were never under siege like in the first period, but it couldn't be sustained.
There were many misses in the third period, and that cost the Blues. Like in the second, St. Louis had some chances, but they were always just off.
Also, like in the second, the Jets capitalized on another Blues turnover. Hofer was standing on his head, keeping the team alive, and the Blues had the puck on the left wall. Buchnevich tried to drop it to the defender, but didn't get near enough on the pass. The Jets picked it off and took a shot that rebounded right to the slot. Ian Iafallo banged on the rebound to make it 2-1.
The Blues pulled the goaltender in the final couple of minutes and, astoundingly, actually looked like a normal team. They possessed the puck, held the zone several times, and cycled it around.
The only thing they didn't do was score. The Jets nearly put it into the empty net, but it glanced off the outside of the goal with about 35 seconds left.
The Blues got it back in, but couldn't generate the same type of play that tied the game against Detroit. The Jets would get an empty net goal with about eight seconds remaining, and the Blues' streak ended with a 3-1 loss.
Con: Power play
The Blues power play wasn't abysmal in this game, but it was more about missed opportunities.
St. Louis got its first power play just a minute or two after tying the game. That was the perfect time to take the lead, gain momentum, and put the squeeze on the game. They didn't do it.
They also got a power play in the third period, while the game was still tied. This was another opportunity to gain the lead and snuff out the Winnipeg crowd, but they didn't do it.
Statistically, 0-2 isn't a big deal. It's the fact that they couldn't capitalize on the situation though.
Pro: Hofer
If not for Joel Hofer, this game would have been decided long ago. The Blues were absorbing way too much pressure, and while the defense wasn't bad, Hofer kept the team in the game.
Statistically, nobody is going to write sagas about this performance. 23 saves on 25 shots isn't mind-blowing, but if you watched the game, it was a different story.
Just watch the highlight of the go ahead goal for the Jets. The fact they didn't score two or three shots prior was enough to get Hofer mentioned here. He was rock solid.
Overview:
The reality of this game is that the Jets were just the better team on this night. They still don't frighten me in a potential playoff matchup, but they deserved the win.
This was one of those rare games in which the Blues just got beaten. They made some mistakes and there wasn't enough offense, but I think a lot of that boiled down to the Jets being the reason.
They didn't allow the Blues the rush plays. They didn't allow St. Louis the breakouts or the second chances. It was a lot of one and dones.
If St. Louis had actually put a couple of those near misses on goal, we'd be talking about a different outcome. They didn't, and the Jets capitalized on their opportunities.
St. Louis wasn't bad. They just weren't good enough.
The Jets played much closer to a playoff style, and the Blues were just slightly flat. St. Louis had a push here or there, but Winnipeg managed to keep them to minimal chances and even fewer second looks.
The Blues won the faceoff battle, which is a good sign. Blocks were just about even, as were hits.
Overall, I'm not disappointed in this game other than the fact that it ended with an L. The streak was always going to come to an end, and I'd rather it be in the regular season instead of the playoffs, when the team might freak out.
If the Blues were not on their A-game and still held the team with the most points to a one-goal game into the final seconds, they're still doing pretty well. On to Edmonton.