Three takeaways from the Blues' deflating loss to the Avs

The St. Louis Blues were unable to win back-to-back games against the Colorado Avalanche, losing 3-1. With this victory, the Avalanche secure the Western Conference and Central Division titles, locking up the Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild as the first-round matchup in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

Here are three takeaways from the Blues' deflating loss, as their own playoff hopes are starting to dwindle. 

Thomas continues to prove his worth

After his first career hat-trick the other night against the Avalanche, Robert Thomas added another goal to his recent flurry of offense. He scored the only tally for the Blues in this one, much like he was the only goal scorer in the last game between these two teams. 

Thomas has shown, now more than ever, how important he is to this franchise. As this summer marks a big transition from General Manager Doug Armstrong to Alexander Steen, No. 18 will be a focal point for this franchise. He just put up four goals on the soon-to-be Presidents’ Trophy winners for 2025-26, and that should be enough to prove that he is the centerpiece of the future. 

Hofer had to work 

For the first time since March 13, goaltender Joel Hofer had to make more than 30 saves in a hockey game. That was seven starts ago, and he has been able to keep that save plateau under that amount thanks to the defense in front of him. 

But, in this game against a vengeful and determined Avalanche team, Hofer had to make 34 saves on 37 shots. This was a tough one for him tonight, but it could have been a whole lot worse. 

Five games to go, and falling behind

This most recent loss now signals that the 2025-26 season has come down to the final five games. Currently, the Blues are still out of the playoffs, and it is a dire situation. 

Moneypuck.com has them at a 1.1% chance of making the playoffs, and looking at the wildcard standings, it makes sense. At 78 points, they are still six points behind Nashville for the second spot, and Nashville has one less game left to play than the Blues. 

That means the Blues have to win three of the next five to tie the Predators, but Nashville has to go winless over the next four of their games. It is not impossible, but very, very unlikely.