The St. Louis Blues finished the final preseason game out of the six-game schedule with a dominating win over the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-0. With a mix of NHLers and some players fighting for a spot on the opening night roster, there was a lot to see in Saturday night's action.
With the regular season on the horizon, ending the preseason on a high note will help this team immensly as they will be off until October 9.
Strong performances from bubble players
The Blues played a fast and physical 60 minutes of hockey, and it was a nice preview of what the opening night roster could look like for most of the lines. Robert Thomas and Jimmy Snuggerud on the first line look like a pairing made in heaven, as their chemistry is strong in such a short amount of time. The same goes for Pius Suter and Jordan Kyrou on the second line; there is something special brewing in the top six.
But it was the bubble players who stole the show. Logan Mailloux was all over the ice, notching two assists on Milan Lucic's tally and Otto Stenberg's goal in the third period to ice the game. Speaking of those two players, Lucic played his strongest game of the preseason, but there might not be enough room for him on the NHL roster, and sending him down to the AHL might be a waste of money. Stenberg is a different story, as the battle between him and Dalibor Dvorsky is going to come down to head coach Jim Montgomery's final say.
Strong goaltending is becoming a trend
Backup goaltender Joel Hofer and top prospect Colten Ellis saw action against Chicago, and both split the shutout victory. With starting goaltender Jordan Binnington also having a stellar preseason, it is apparent that this is not a fluke.
Hofer, who was in the first two periods against the Blackhawks, stopped all eight shots he faced. He finishes the preseason with a 2.59 Goals Against Average, stopping 46 out of 52 shots he faced.
Ellis saw 24 shots on him this preseason, and stopped every single one of them. There is a high ceiling for this 25-year-old goaltender, and another year in Springfield might show what plans General Manager Doug Armstrong has for him in the goaltending rotation.
Now, it is time to finally play some regular-season hockey. Let's see if all the success the Blues had in the preseason pays off when it actually matters.