Category: St. Louis Blues

Paul Stastny Coming To St. Louis

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Colorado Avalanche v San Jose SharksWhen I first heard about the acquisition of Paul Stastny by the St. Louis Blues, one thing came to my mind. How do they pull it off? Did Blues GM Doug Armstrong enlist St. Louis native Jon Hamm to dress up as Don Draper and make the killer pitch to Stastny’s group? How did this deal go down? Blues couldn’t be more excited about the 29 year old center coming to town to play for the Blues. There are reasons this deal blindsided local fans.

For the last few seasons, Doug Armstrong and the Blues haven’t been big free agent spenders. When the clock struck 11 a.m. today here in St. Louis, no one knew what the Blues were going to do. Did a trade for Ottawa’s Jason Spezza make more sense of the hometown team or was there a chance the team could grab hometown kid Paul Stastny? On Monday, Stastny trimmed his list down of potential suitors and the Blues were on that short stack of teams. Today’s free agency kicked off and didn’t take long before big deals started happening. Spezza went to the Stars in a huge 6 player deal. Ryan Miller found a new place to tend goal in Vancouver. James Neal found a new home. Before the clock struck high noon in the Midwest, the Blues signed Stastny to a 4 year deal worth 28 million.

Upon his signing, Stastny said that he had to go with his gut and he didn’t regret coming to St. Louis, the place where his Hall of Fame father Peter retired his career for. Stastny took less money and years to come to St. Louis. Armstrong didn’t need Hamm, Draper, or any additional leverage than a solid deal and a Blues jersey to lure Stastny in. Once he made the decision to not return to Colorado, Stastny more than likely looked at the Arch City hockey team and decided to come home.

Stastny broke into the league in 2006-07, scoring 28 goals and 78 points. He added 79 in 2007-08 and has averaged right around 70 points per season for his entire career. With the exception of the lockout season in 2012-13, Stastny has played less than 66 games only once and is a durable player, which was a warning sign on the potential Spezza trade.

Stastny tallied 10 points and 5 goals in the playoffs this past spring and will only get better when placed in this system of Blues that already enlists a strong balanced presence. Stastny isn’t going to be crowned the savior of the Blues simply because he is the hometown kid, makes the most money on the team and has the reputation of a two way player who can elevate a team. He is being brought here to secure the final piece of the puzzle for a team so close to being a legit Stanley Cup contender. The last two playoff exits looked like a goaltender mismatch at first glance but when one looked closer, the Blues simply couldn’t score enough to advance. Stastny will fill that void and only make the players around him better as well. The Blues big find at center last offseason was Derek Roy. This summer, Armstrong is leaving nothing to chance.

One must tip their cap to Armstrong. He has quietly improved this team and took some risks. He brought over Jay Bouwmeester to fortify the defense and bring that big presence back to blue line. He made the blockbuster trade for Miller and while it didn’t pay off, one must respect the gamble the GM took in taking that shot for his team. Now, Armstrong lands Stastny and one can only hope the Blues team turns this surprise into a celebration come next summer.

What exactly does the kid bring to the Blues? A legit center who can work on the top line or anchor the second line. Put Stastny anywhere and he is going to thrive and pump points into the other players around him.  I am sorry Vladimir Sobotka fans but the Blues now have someone to truly inhabit that role and Sobe can go back to being the key utility player that Ken Hitchcock needs.

It would be quite the fit to slip Stastny in between Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko on the second line and let them wreak havoc on opposing clubs. Stastny could also work on the top line and slide David Backes over to wing and move Alex Steen or T.J. Oshie to the second line. Hitch has options and Armie has given them to him with a goal in mind. Win the cup. For the St. Louis Blues and their fans, that is the message every single season.

With Paul Stastny on board, that dream seems a little closer.

 

What Happened To The St. Louis Blues?

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It’s official. The St. Louis Blues are in serious trouble. It was only 36 hours ago that I wrote a post on Arch City Sports about the team simply needing to find an energy and58f1c76bbe9b420ab3fcee80d69ddcec-bea9a0d12fd24044b2ddc20f22f06f68-5 get back to their winning ways before the playoffs started next week. I went to a movie and came out to find that the Blues had lost 4-1 in lackluster style to the Washington Capitals(minus Halak in net). Alexander Ovechkin came in and draped the net in red Russian fury, scoring once to start things off and assisting on another goal. The Blues were beaten again at Scottrade Center and have scored only four goals in their last 4 games there. Also, the Ducks hopped over the Blues tonight with 112 points to take over ownership of the Western Conference with 3 games to go.

What is going on with this team? Let me run down a quick list of potential issues and ideal remedies.

*GET A SHOT ON GOAL. Let’s not speak lightly here. The Blues defensemen and forwards are horrible at putting pucks on net. If it isn’t Alex Pietrangelo air mailing a slap shot from the point into the upper left boards or Alexander Steen unleashing a wildly inaccurate slap shot, the team simply isn’t hitting the targets. They are ranked 24th in the NHL when it comes to getting shots on net. We want to. We try. We simply can’t. Change that.

*It’s been a while since this team scored a lot of goals over a decent multi-game stretch. Sure, they have won a decent amount and risen to the top of the division via fine defense and goaltending, but the Blues aren’t scoring furiously anymore. As nice as it is to see T.J. Oshie make a fool out of a goalie in shootouts, it would be swell to see this team take charge this last week and put a few pucks in the net.

*When you have trouble beating teams like Buffalo, how do you expect to fare against Colorado and Chicago? The Blues peaked in the early part of the year, went to Sochi, came back half asleep, woke up briefly and have now fallen off a cliff into pure despicable solitude. If you know a way out, comment below. I’d love to hear it.

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Ryan Miller Changes The Blues Outlook

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hi-res-453667981-ryan-miller-of-the-buffalo-sabres-skates-off-the-ice-in_crop_northIn the immortal words of The Joker, Ryan Miller coming to the St. Louis Blues tonight in a blockbuster trade with the Buffalo Sabres changes things. A team that had the best win percentage in the league and ranked in the top five in goals per game, goals allowed per game, penalty kill and power play efficiency still had a small leak. Their goaltenders produced a save percentage that ranked 17th in the NHL. Sure, Wednesday night, Jaro Halak made 34 saves in a 1-0 loss on the road in Vancouver. However, that doesn’t mean there was consistency there or an ability to take over a series of games in net. In short, the Blues had a need that wasn’t glaring but utterly apparent from a short distance, so general manager Doug Armstrong made a move and pushed this team into Stanley Cup contention.

Blues fans have been frustrated by a strong regular season team the past few seasons but one that couldn’t excel in the playoffs. The last two times the Blues made it into the playoffs, they ran into a goaltender in Kings’ stopper Jonathan Quick who was a lot better than their guy. With no hard smack to the likes of Brian Elliot or Halak, they will never be Quick and that was the mountain the team could not climb. Halak and Elliot were serviceable goaltenders alone and strong as a duo but in order to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, a team needs one man in net who can be spectacular at any given moment. With this trade, Armstrong is telling his team, “Here is your guy, so please go win one for this city now”. The expectations have officially gone through the roof now. As I noted earlier, things have changed for the St. Louis Blues. That is the nature of the business of pro sports. One night you call a man a teammate. The next he is shipped to another team for a player who hopefully makes you a better team.

The official deal looks like this. Miller and Steve Ott come to the Blues in exchange for Chris Stewart, Halak, prospect William Carrier, a first round pick in 2015 and a third round pick in 2016. It’s a very good deal. Stewart, except for a few games in December, has been a huge disappointment for the Blues this season. A guy wearing the jersey because he can score and provide tenacity has done very little this year in terms of mere production. Carrier doesn’t rank too high on the upcoming depth chart train and the two draft picks aren’t easily offered but stand as unknown quantities at this current juncture.

Ott is a solid grinder, a 31 year old former first round draft pick and center who served as Captain of the Sabres and will provide more punch to the Blues depth. He isn’t going to light up the lamp but that wasn’t the Blues particular need. Once again. The Blues can score goals. They have maintained a goals per game average that ranked at the top of the NHL and have a lot of young talent. Ott is a guy who will give it all every single night and is a player other teams and their fanbases love to hate. Just ask Blues fans before 6 p.m. this evening how they felt about him. He will help this team currently struggling with injuries to key players.

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T.J. Oshie Becomes A Legend in Russia

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This is the kind of story worth spreading around.  In case you missed my Arch City Sports piece earlier this afternoon, here is my Oshie piece from the Olympics game this morning that was heard around the world.  

The story reminded me of Rocky 4.   An American slaying a monstrous Russian dragon inside the foreign country.  Sure, Oshie didn’t tell the Russians “we can all change” but he did revoke the hero label, saying the real heroes wear “camo”.  Good for him and the Blues organization, which is doing quite well so far.   Patrik Berglund has a pair of goals, Alex Steen a couple of assists, and Backes has a goal.   Oshie made a little history today and here is my story on it.  Enjoy and have a good weekend.

Sure, it wasn’t Al Michaels screaming “it’s a miracle” this morning around the United States, but the St. Louis Blues’ T.J. Oshie definitely delivered the shot heard aroundTeam USA's T.J. Oshie scores the game winning goal over Russia during a shootout in their men's preliminary round hockey game at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games the world this morning in Sochi as he helped the USA beat Russia 3-2 via shootout.  In an epic morning battle that involved lead changes, blood, sweat, tears, a rejected goal and 8 rounds of shootout action, the St. Louis Blue delivered the kill shot.  Oshie has always been regarded around the NHL as a good hockey player, but today he turned into a legend.  No matter what happens the rest of the way, everybody who woke up at 6 a.m.  will remember where they were when Oshie sank the Russians.

I’ve said for years that Oshie is the best shootout artist in the NHL.  He is 7-10 on shootout attempts this year and lifetime he is 25-46 (54 percent).  That’s ridiculous.  Oshie has baby Jesus smooth hands when it comes to going one-on-one with a goaltender.  The matchup simply isn’t fair for opposing coaches and stoppers.  When he skates to the middle of the ice and leans down with his hands on his knees, the arena seems to shut off for him and silence surrounds the moment.  Certain athletes can do that in the middle of chaos:  clear out the noise and focus like an assassin. His shootout ability is akin to a base-stealing threat.  True base thieves in baseball steal bags off instinct and natural born ability, not just speed.   It takes confidence, precision and a dose of swagger.

I am sure, for some hockey players, that length of the ice from the center line to the net is shorter than it appears on television. A lot of players simply can’t make up their mind and are beaten by themselves when they reach the net.  Oshie is different, and so deadly. He skates in side to side before settling straight up the ice at the last moment. He can pause and choose where he wants to put the puck. His best move is where he skates in quick, slows it down suddenly, pauses, freezes the goaltender and buries a wrist shot right between the legs.

Oshie didn’t just score one shootout goal.  USA coach Dan Bylsma sent him out there six times total and Oshie scored four.   The same goaltender saw him six times and could only stop him twice.  That’s sick. Completely unheard of.  Once again, it doesn’t matter what happens tomorrow or next week; everyone will remember the USA’s effort today.  They will remember Jonathan Quick’s brilliance in net. They will remember the notorious Red Wing Pavel Datsyuk bringing Russia back with two goals. The oddness for me in the Olympics is seeing the teams separated and the unlikely groups of players. Quick playing behind three Blues players instead of in front of them, Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaroslav Halak playing against the Americans. The familiar face of Datsyuk tormenting our souls and the team’s chances. This is why this event is so special, and why it’s only held every four years. It’s a celebration of the diversity in the talent of this league. All the countries, uniting rivals together for a couple of weeks, to battle for the most precious medal in all of sports. Just like any other huge sporting event, a particular moment can shine the brightest during a tournament propped up by skill.

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Is Ryan Miller Worth The Squeeze?

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It is that time of year where NHL trade rumors hit the highway and start to move at remarkable speeds, confounding fans and whipping teams’ faithful units into agitated frenzies.  Some say it’s good for fans to mix it up in the heat of the battle while others complain about blood pressures hitting the roof.   I prefer to observe, show restraint and wait  for the actual suits to make things happen.   With that said, I think we can still circle the situation and present our take.  Being faithful supporters of the St. Louis Blues, we owe ourselves that much.  So let’s look at it.

The million dollar question is quite simple.   Do the St. Louis Blues need to make a serious play for Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller?  The two parties have circled each imageedit_1_8180860284other like attractive parties at a ballroom dance session for years, so the hype isn’t premature.  Buffalo and St. Louis have talked about this before and part of me suggests Doug Armstrong had played out many scenarios in his head of how this could go down.  Let me weigh in here with my decent amount of knowledge on hockey and the Blues needs.

First, let me state that I am not completely for the deal or entirely against it.   I stand in the middle, contemplating each play here as the days pass.   My belief is that Jaro Halak and Brian Elliot are each pretty good goaltenders and make a solid duo but may not be able to stand alone during a time of need.   Neither has shown over a decent amount of time that they can handle the #1 job but have very solid stats to back up their cases.   If I had to choose one for the playoff run, I would stand with Halak.  It can’t be forgotten what he did in Montreal in 2010 during the playoffs.  He earned the 4 year deal with the Blues by playing that well in place of Carey Price.   Elliot can play well for a certain period of time but has come up short in back to back playoff appearances against the Blues new nemesis, the Los Angeles Kings.  Part of that was a result of overall team letdown, but Elliot self destructed when the rest of the team needed him to stand on his head.

The Blues also have a hot rookie waiting down with the Chicago Wolves, in Jake Allen.   About this time last year, Halak went down with an injury and Elliot self destructed during the season and Allen stepped into the net for the Blues.  For the better part of February, Allen was amazing in net, showing the hunger and ability that created the possibility that the Blues had in their own system a true #1 goaltender.

Allen is the biggest reason I think Ryan Miller isn’t needed.  I can see Halak or Elliot being moved before the deadline for talent, but I am not sure we need another goaltender.  If you have two pretty good goalies on your roster and another potential franchise stopper in your minor league system who got a taste of NHL action last season, why trade away valuable pieces for Miller?   Buffalo isn’t going to hand their premiere goalie away without prying draft picks, good established players and possibly the IMOS Pizza franchise from St. Louis.  In the immortal words of Timothy Olyphant in the underrated film Girl Next Door, “Is the juice worth the squeeze” here?

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The Cost of Losing Your Captain

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Sure the Blues are whipping the Canadians 3-1 right now after two periods but here is something I posted today on archcitysports.com.   Check it out.  Also I included some info at the bottom that I include on my Arch City posts.  Indulge me for a minute so that all of my email and subscribers can get to know me better.

Matt Duchene, Matt Hunwick, David Backes

If the loss of St. Louis Blues captain David Backes extends farther than a week or so, the Blues could be in serious trouble.   Think about it.   Backes scores goals, delivers the big hits, plays two way hockey and is a great leader.  If anyone deserves to be captain in this league, Backes is at the top of the list.   He lives and breathes authority on the ice every time he touches it and is more nifty with a puck than people give him credit for.

The captain has 16 goals and 14 assists this season and was lost in the Ottawa Senators game on Tuesday night after a collision involving his head.   When Blues fans think of head collisions, the mind immediately triggers memories of David Perron and Andy McDonald.  The two former Blues lost a heavy load of games due to concussions, and no one is even uttering that word right now around Scottrade Center.  Backes’ injury is almost under lockdown order, with the press not officially releasing the heavily feared “C” word in physical sports.   We all know what it is.  Watch the replay again and try not to grimace.  The big guy got clocked and went down hard.  He has been ruled out for a week at least.  All we know is he can skate with the team but that’s it.   If one of the FSN girls bumps into him in the hallway, the guy could be set back a few days probably for all we know.

Now that we know this is a higher than usual body injury, what are the Blues going to do without their leader?   Survive of course.  What did the Cards do without Yadi Molina in August?  They got by and tried to win as many games as possible without their rock.   The Rams have surprised people all over the league with their play after the loss of Sam Bradford.   The Blues are going to have to dig their feet in and win games on grit and supreme effort.

This a wakeup call to a big Swede named Patrik Berglund, who has TWO goals this season.   He doesn’t play good defense, makes lazy attempts at forechecking and wouldn’t be put on a penalty kill if Hitchcock was down to his coaching staff for options.   He is taking up space and only playing a decent amount of time because he is part of the original magic group of youth which once included Perron, T.J. Oshie and Erik Johnson.   Two of those guys are departed and while T.J. is having a quietly fine year, Bergie hasn’t done anything worth talking about in a positive tone.   How long are we going to wait for the player with the size to be great to produce?   The clock is ticking towards the trade deadline and it’s time for Berglund to step up.   Throw in another ghoulishly disgusting mustache if that’s what it takes.

Chris Stewart was on the same watch as Berglund until a recent surge of goals and pulse activity.    Stewart can languish and fight for points like other hollow bodied forwards, but he at least brings a tenacity and two way skill to the game.   When in doubt and you aren’t producing points, it’s time to be a little mean out there and Stewie can do that.   Both Berglund and Stewart need to step up and at least imitate Backes this weekend.  Do something useful or find yourself on the market in two months.

Losing Backes long term would be detrimental to the team.   Color it with shiny blue colors and pass the tasty kool aide around but if Backes misses 3 to 6 weeks because of a head injury, you can go ahead and drag this team down to the bottom of the conference.   We have 22 wins and are struggling to maintain position in the toughest Western conference in a decade.

When Ryan Reaves went down, that put the team in a decent bind.  Reaves makes the other team rethink their line strategy and fear the aggressiveness of Reaves unleashed on the ice on their big guys.   He can also dislocate someone’s jaw and score a goal and handle himself on the ice in a hockey sense.  He is much more than a goon.  Reaves was hard to lose, and it’s nice to see him skating again with the broken hand on then mend(he got that bashing some guy’s face in by the way).

If losing Reaves was tough, taking David Backes from this team would be crippling.   Backes is the Blues in one body.   Toughness, skill, smarts and fearlessness.   You can’t replace that with a trade or a backup option.  You can only imitate it for a few games.

Backes used to be the guy who scored 30 plus goals,had some ferocity and was a valuable young player.  He has grown into a leader in the community and takes the place at the forefront of this team every time he touches the ice.   He takes on the other team’s best, wins faceoffs with ease and has rediscovered his scoring touch after a lost partial season last year.

In comparison, Alex Steen play a great 2 way game and is scoring a ton and making a difference but he isn’t David Backes.   He isn’t the heart and soul of this team.   The rookies look up to Backes like he is a blend of Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin on ice skates.   They would follow him into a nuclear missile strike.  Without Backes, the Blues are a frail team leaking oil.   Take the engine out of a Dodge Charger and you have the Blues going against Montreal tonight at Scottrade.

This couldn’t happen at a worse time.   Vladimir Sobotka is out and Jaden Schwartz is returning after missing a couple games.   Reaves is only skating.   The Blues have a couple road games against inferior talent on Saturday and Monday but those aren’t sure fire wins.   This isn’t the time to slip down the mountain.   If you ask for anything this Christmas, ask for a healthy David Backes.   With him, we are deadly long term.   Sure, we have had an uneven past couple of weeks but with him we are deadly for teams every night.  Without him, in addition to the losses of Reaves and Sobotka, we are missing something out there.   Something vital.

Be well, Backes, please for the love of Cup Crazy explosive energy on Clark Avenue in June be healthy soon.   Your team’s chances depend on your health.

Also, the Blues play the Blackhawks next Saturday and I would love to see Backes kick the crap out of Jonathan Toews again.   Some things just don’t get old.

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Dan Buffa writes for the local blog United Cardinal Bloggers in addition to Arch City Sports and also writes for his personal blog, http://www.doseofbuffa.com.   He is a STL born and raised writer with a need to inform and the ability to pound out 1,000-1,500 word pieces with ease.  He also runs and writes for a STL based movie website, film-addict.com.   When he isn’t writing or drinking coffee, he is spending time with his wife and son in South City.  Follow him at @buffa82 on Twitter and reach him for thoughts, comments and general feedback at buffa82@gmail.com.

 

A Tale Of Three Goaltenders

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****UPDATED-Written before the Blues impressive road warrior like 4-3 overtime win last night in Columbus over former Blue goalie Mike McKenna and company.  The outcome fits into my piece below.  Jaro Halak, after getting rocked early due to some bad defensive turnovers and sharp home team play, recovered and made great saves in giving his team a chance to come back.   Halak came through big time last night.  Enjoy the piece, published yesterday afternoon.”****

The Blues are sitting pretty right now and are in no truly dire position to buy or sell parts.  Sure, there are a few leaks on the roster that could use sealing but there are no glaring holes.  For every letdown like Patrik Berglund there is a bright new light like Jaden Schwartz.   They are hustling their way through the ferociously competitive Western Conference and doing very well.   Before tonight’s game with the Columbus Blue Jackets, The Blues walk into the arena with a record of 21-6-3 with a goal differential of 106-70.   Sit on that as we continue.

Looking at that record, one would be hesitant to point out any problems.  Sure, that record leaves us tied for fifth in the Western Conference at 45 points but if we win tonight and the Kings/Sharks do not, we are suddenly in 3rd place.   That is how tightly wound the NHL is this year and how hard it will be to find your footing in the playoffs.   That is why it is important to enjoy the record yet keep your eyes on the future and the biggest prize.  Lord Stanley’s Cup.

As a Blues fan waiting for that first parade on Clark, that is all we think about.   Holding it high and standing taller than the rest.  Any Stanley Cup team lives or dies on their goaltending, which is why it’s important to point out the fine situation the Blues find themselves in as we cruise towards 2014.

Jaro Halak is the starter in his fourth and final year of his contract and is playing very well.   He is 15-5-2 with a save percentage of 91 percent and a goals against average of 2.24.  He has two shutouts and has shown moments of greatness  in net.   Some don’t like his style because upon first glance it is a laid back slow moving way of stopping shots.   It has always been Halak’s way and served him well in his career as a starting goaltender.

Halak isn’t perfect and has shown signs of instability, both mental and physically.  He has been pulled 3 times and shown the ability to not be mentally prepared for a game. Against the Ducks at Scottrade last weekend, Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau said the team picked up on something in Halak’s pregame and exposed in with 4 first period goals in knocking out the Slovak.   Every goalie has these moments but how many more will Halak have.  He is the starter so he gets bigger smack when he has a bad game than the backup gets put through the ringer.  Same as a starter getting shelled as opposed to a reliever.  When people depend on you to be the #1 and you don’t perform, eyes are on you.  Right or wrong, that’s sports.

Brian Elliot has also done a very good job as the backup.  He is 6-1-1 with a shutout and a 93 % save percentage as well as a 2.14 goals against.   Sure, he has played less and doesn’t get as exposed as Halak, but in his role as a backup, Elliot has flourished.  He has been chased at least once himself and can sometimes look lost on simple straight shots but he has also rescued the team from potential blowouts.  His style is as different from Halak as it gets.  He is a hyper active goalie with quick movements and adjustments.  There are times where one thinks he simply moves too fast for his own good.

Elliot has done a fine job.  However, when pushed to being the starter, over a long period of time, has shown the ability to be solved by opposing teams and become less stellar as the consecutive starts piled on.  Like Halak, he can be had and the more games he plays in a row, the likelihood of that happening only grows.

Reading this, you may think I am shooting our goaltenders down.  I am not.  Here is the situation.  The Blues have two very capable goaltenders.  In my eyes, neither can be a clear cut starter and with a tandem like this, neither HAVE to be.  Head coach Ken Hitchcock can simply play the hot hand and when that goalie starts to fade, you insert the other.

As much as I want to see Jake Allen make an appearance soon, at this moment, he isn’t needed.  He is a fine insurance policy shall injury strike the Blues in the net, but right now let him flourish in the minors.  Allen is young, highly touted and hungry.  We saw what he could do last season.  In February of this year, Elliot wore down in the starter role after Halak’s 35th muscle pull, and Allen stepped in and took over while Elliot went to the minors to deal with his situation and regroup.  While he wasn’t perfect himself, Allen dominated games, craved the spotlight, never showed an ounce of fear and informed the Blues brass he was ready for the big stage.

As desirable as that is, right now, the Blues are fine.   They have a decent amount of money allocated to these two goalies on the roster and need to ride them while they are producing at this kind of level.   Halak may never be a clear cut #1 guy for a whole season due to his inability to stay healthy and suffer off breakdowns.  Elliot may never be able to handle the month long load of being a #1 goalie.   The good news is neither have to be and can come together a  two bodied force and propel this team towards the halfway mark and hopefully into the playoffs.

We all know Halak’s injury history and Elliot’s ability to be exposed, and get how that can affect the playoff hopes for this team.   As great as this team has been, we haven’t seen a truly deep playoff run in a long time.   We tossed out the Sharks two years ago and got swept by the Kings.  Last season, we got a 2-0 lead on the Kings and saw every facet of the team break down.  Both times, Elliot was in the spotlight and lost his way.   What will happen in the spring of 2014?  Nobody can tell at this point so it’s important to watch these two stoppers do their thing and push this team towards the glory hour.

Individually, Halak and Elliot aren’t perfect.  Together, as a tandem, they are nearly unbeatable.  The Blues have a good situation with their goaltending.  No friction or controversy.  Good old fashioned depth.  Enjoy it because other teams only envy it.

Thanks for reading.  Reach me at buffa82@gmail.com or @buffa82 on Twitter.  

Photo Credit-www.stltoday.com

Blues Plant Their Feet At Home

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st-louis-blues

Let me tell you something.  The Blues 7-3 pummeling of the Colorado Avalanche tonight was one of the best experiences I have had watching this team in a couple years.  The Avalanche came in with the best winning percentage in the NHL and the Note greeted them with a beating that turned the game into a boxing slugfest towards the end of the second period.   The first period played out like most of the Blues-Coyotes game played at Scottrade on Tuesday.  Close, hard nosed, and gritty hockey that marked two top teams going at it.   Then, the game took a turn for blowout city.  Whatever pride walking in that accompanied the Colorado team, the Blues took it all by the time they left the ice for good this evening.

The Blues wasted little time in the second period, scoring nearly three minutes in on a sweet play by the trio of Derek Roy, T.J. Oshie and David Backes.  Then, Alex Steen collected the first of his 2 goals 5 minutes later on a snap shot.   Shortly afterwards, Vladimir Tarasenko buried a slap shot to make it 4-1.  Finally, around 15 minutes in, Chris Stewart joined the party by cleaning up a rebound with a tap in goal.   When this happens in hockey, the losing team will resort to a higher level of physicality to make up for their lousy play.  So the fights began.  Stewart responded to a high knee hit attempt by pummeling Cory Sarich into submission.   Before leaving the ice, Stewart asked the fans to raise the roof.  No worries, Stewie, your teammates were just getting warmed up.

Less than a minute later, fan favorite and pound for pound king Vladimir Sobotka was asked to throw down and accepted the duel, throwing Matt Duchene to the ice, picking him up and slugging him three times before dropping him again.   The Avalanche opened the SOBE door and got denied, but more so tried to bully the Blues and got their asses handed to them instead.   The carnage wasn’t over yet.  Cody McLeod stepped onto the ice and asked Blues enforcer Ryan Reaves to dance.  So Reaves unleashed the monkey arms and beat the spit out of McLeod, raining down punches on him like the refs weren’t even there.   Let me say this.  If you ask a man to fight, they are free to punch you until they can be separated.   The Blues went all 1970’s Flyers on the Avalanche tonight.  They put up a quick 5 spot and then responded to the expected threats by taking the fight right back to the team leaking oil.  This was the Blues best overall showing in a game this season and it’s not even close.  Against a very good team, they beat them in every area possible.

Sure, Jaro Halak allowed 2 soft goals and shook his head every time.   Every goalie should treat big leads like they don’t exist so the focus doesn’t lessen.   Halak made some quality saves early and continued with a few more in the last period as the teams traded 2 goals a piece but overall, Halak wasn’t sharp tonight.  When it comes to sports karma, I will take this lapse in execution.  If our goalie wants to pick a night to be off, choose the night where 7 goals are your backbone and margin for error is near the ceiling.

The boys didn’t stop pressing and that won the game here tonight.   Look at Tarasenko dive for a puck late in the third period of a 5 goal game.   Very impressive.   That’s the right way to play hockey.   Keep skating, applying pressure, shooting on net and don’t take your foot off the gas.   For such a fast sport, a certain ruthless mentality is required.  You don’t run up scores in hockey.  You score as many goals as possible to put the other team down and keep them there.  Leads evaporate in hockey and tonight was nothing short of domination by the home team.

This has been a season charging home stand.  Last Tuesday, the team came back from a 2-1 deficit in Montreal to steal a game on the road.  We narrowly beat a feisty Calgary team before dispatching of the Penguins and Sidney Crosby on Saturday.   After losing to a very good Phoenix Coyotes team on Tuesday, the Blues responded with a landslide victory tonight against Colorado.

The record is now 12-2-3 on the season.  TWO regulation losses so far.  This is quite the impressive start and while it shouldn’t be taken for granted, there is room to feel a little pride as a Blues fan.   This is the kind of great electric play you want to see from your team after a tough loss 48 hours earlier.  Steen’s 16 goal start is very impressive but don’t forget about T.J. Oshie’s 14 assists, 4 of which came tonight.   A guy with all kinds of talent and as versatile and strong on his skates as anyone, Oshie is becoming a late blooming playmaker.   Derek Roy has been exciting and a breath of fresh air.    Backes has 7 goals and 12 assists.  Tarasenko has 6 goals.  Alex Pietrangelo has 15 points.   Production is coming from all over the roster.  The goaltending hasn’t been superb but keeps the team in the game and refuses to break.

Can this continue?  You never know.  That saying is the kiss of bittersweet death in competitive sports.   Forget about the rest of the season, focus on Saturday and celebrate what the Blues did tonight on home ice against Patrick Roy’s talented group of players.   An impressive feat that deserves attention.

Thanks for staying to the end,

Dan L. Buffa

@buffa82 on Twitter

http://www.doseofbuffa.com

sara.stl-wordpress.com-Photo Credit

Taking A Look At The Blues

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Now that the sting of the Cards World Series loss has started to evaporate and the Rams are in decline mode this season, I can look at this hockey team up the street on 14th and Clark with 100 % focus.  Sure, we have heard these kind of bells and whistles before but once again the Note are riding high to start a season.   After disposing of the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night at Scottrade, the Blues are 11-2-2.   One of their best starts to a season in franchise history and something to make the sudden sourness of St. Louis sports fade away for a little while this month.   At the beginning of October things were rocking in St. Louis sports.  The Cards were headed to postseason play with a title in their vision and the Rams were looking decent so far in their season.   A month later, the Birds fell flat in Boston and lost a painful World Series and Sam Bradford tore up his knee and sent the Rams season spiraling downward into “Draft Watch’ oblivion.  However, the Blues have fired off a series of impressive wins this season and showed a resilience and full team ability to win games.   Let’s talk about a few things, including that Alex Steen guy.

Steen Breakout.  Suddenly, the NHL network knows this guy’s name along with the city of St. Louis.  The Canadian who came over to St. Louis in a trade for Lee Stempniak from Toronto right around Thanksgiving in 2008, Steen has been an energetic spark plug for the team on both ends of the ice since.   This year, though, he is becoming something else.  A goal scoring threat.  A legit net blaster.   Through 15 games, he has 14 goals.   In 40 games last season, he had 8.   His highest total in his career came in 2009-2010 with the Blues when he sunk 24 goals in 68 games.  It’s safe to say the man is something else this season and no it is not all luck.   Steen is more aggressive and getting his nose dirty in the forecheck every shift and battling for pucks.  The man with the crooked nose is letting it all go and it’s effort and the ability to shoot the puck that is making him find the back of the net.   A player can have all the talent and skill in the world but if they are timid with the puck, few goals will find their way back to their stick.  Steen is getting good feeds from David Backes and T.J. Oshie and firing on goal and looking pretty accurate.  While most of the team sends lawn darts to the back of the boards or off the post, Steen is showing more accuracy.  He won’t continue to score at this pace so don’t lose a best friend over a fantasy hockey trade just yet.   Appreciate it while it lasts and understand it is not blind luck.   Steen is coming into his own as a complete hockey player and a man I liked ever since he put the note on his chest.  It’s nice when success happens to a good guy and someone who has paid his NHL dues.

Steady As They Go In Net.  Going into the season, the Blues had goaltending depth unlike most NHL teams.   Carrying two goalies capable of playing well in the clutch in Jaro Halak and Brian Elliot, they also held the silver bullet down on the farm in Jake Allen.   The two vets know the team will eventually belong to the kid, so they aren’t wasting their time raising their stock this year.   Halak is 9-2-1 with a 2.19 goals against average and Elliot is 2-0-1 with a 2.05 goals against average.  Each goalie has a save percentage of 92 percent.   They don’t throw every game on their back and carry it home.  They support their fellow skaters, make decent saves, a few great ones and collect the W.  Each player is playing in a walk season so it’s the best possible situation for a team holding onto young blood while the older wolves duke it out in net.  Halak and Elliot are both 28 years older and looking for work next season so don’t expect them to settle down any time soon.  Each has a chip on their shoulder.  Halak’s is his easy ability to get hurt and miss a significant amount of time.  This is a talented Slovak who has only played a high of 57 games in a season in his time here in St. Louis.  Halak made his name with excellent play in the 2009-2010 Eastern Conference Finals when he took over for Carey Price and nearly carried the Canadiens to a Stanley Cup final.   As a Blue, he has been solid yet far too vulnerable.   Elliot is a great backup who can shine for periods of time as a starter yet runs into a wall in the playoffs and also can falter easily.  Two goalies with different styles holding the fort this season will be interesting.  So far, so good.

The Slow Developing Big Guys.  We can only hope Chris Stewart and Patrik Berglund find their footing and begin to pitch in this season.  They have 3 goals and 10 points between them after 15 games and while that is a small sample size, the icebreaking fact is these two players can go very cold for a long stretch.  Stewart can get aggressive and be a table setter at times and Bergie is a big body around the net, but these two well paid lads have to kick it up a notch.   Straighten out the shots and put them in the net.   Be the goal scorers this team pays you to be.   You two saw what happened to David Perron right?   We traded him for a guy whose name no one knows or can properly pronounce.  Just an alert section.

The Reaves Sessions.  It’s been a long time since this team had an enforcer who could actually play and handle a puck.   Ryan Reaves is a fine 4th line grinder who can smash someone’s teeth in and finish a beautiful play in front of the net.  Tonight, after picking a fight and winning against the Penguins tough guy, Reaves crashed the net all night and pulled off the most wicked tip in I have seen this year.   A goal that gave the Blues a 1-0 lead.   First, Reaves supplied the team with a pair of testicles and finished it with a go ahead goal.  Cam Janssen, Tony Twist, Kelly Chase, Reed Low and D.J. King weren’t known for touching the puck much less handling it.   Reaves is impressing me every night.  I have always had a soft spot for enforcers.   This guy is making my stand easy to make.

What To Make Of This Start?  The same as you do with Steen’s fast start.  Appreciate it while preparing for reality to hit soon enough.  The Blues have a problem of taking bad penalties in their offensive zone and can take periods of hockey off and leave their goalie hanging out to dry.   Like every great team, the Blues will hit a wall.  It’s how they react to that fall and move on from it that will determine their spot in the standings come April.   Hockey is so different than baseball or football.   You don’t play every day but there are areas where you play 3 games in 5 nights and need to sustain a level of play.   As head coach Ken Hitchcock(in his first full season as the skipper) pointed out, the Blues can’t afford to have too many passengers on their team.  Free loaders failing to make a dent and do their part(hello Stewie and Bergie).   Everyone on this team has to be ready to go and contribute.  Tonight, David Backes and T.J. Oshie may not have shown up in the goals or assists column but they played their asses off.   Defenseman Jay Bouwmeester had a great game and took Sidney Crosby out of the equation.   Sidney remains scoreless against the Blues in his tremendous career.  Vladimir Sobotka continues to build his versatile legend around Scottrade by being a man who can kill a penalty or fill in on the second line and put together an offensive rush while throwing his 170 pounds into any size opposing player.  The Blues are made or broken by players like Sobotka.   Role players.  How long will this last?   That depends on health, scheduling and this team’s ability to trade the #1 star of the night each game.   One thing is for sure.  Once again, as the holidays near, the St. Louis Blues will be a force to reckon with in the Western Conference and have the roster to make a serious run at a Stanley Cup championship.  Hold off on giving Steen the Hart Trophy and making the Conference Champions shirts for now.  Let’s just enjoy this fine stretch of hockey that the Blues are playing.

Thanks for staying,

Dan Buffa

@buffa82 on Twitter

Photo Credit-www.timesunion.com

 

 

 

The Golden Brett Returns

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I remember the St. Louis Post Dispatch’s sports cover when Brett Hull left the Blues.  A comic photo of him wearing a Stars uniform.   Hull left the Blues because he couldn’t find a way to fit into Joel Quennville’s system.  It was written up as a mutual parting, but as Brett Hull said today in his press conference at Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis where he was announced as the club’s new Executive Vice President, he didn’t want to leave.  Hull’s last season with the Note ended in 1998 where he scored 27 goals and collected 45 assists as he transitioned from goal scorer to a versatile threat.  We all know the rest.  Hull went on to win two Stanley Cups(Dallas, Detroit) but his legacy stayed with the Blues.  He changed hockey in this town when he arrived in the late 1980′s and scored 41 goals in 1988-89.  He lit the fire that rebooted the shaky tendencies of the foundation off Oakland Avenue at the old barn.   Wile bitterness marked his exit, his return was showered in acclaim and warm authentic feeling.

Hull took the stage Monday night to take his new front office role and quickly reminded us of the greatness that represented his candidness with the club for so many years.  If you think Lance Berkman is blunt with reporters, he is playing with Hull’s playbook.   Assessing his new duties with saucy humor, Hull pointed out the reasons he was brought in.  ”I need to sell the remaining 16 luxury suites.”   His impact here will hit harder than that.   Hull won’t be directly involved with player personnel but his voice will be heard.  His intellect and knowledge got him this job as well as the face to reformat over the franchise press junkets.

I grew up watching Hull put goals in the back of the net.  I wish upon more than a few stars that he could get into hockey shape and get out there and show these younger talents how to truly become a sniper.  A well known lethal weapon that lights the lamp more than not.  Hull didn’t miss the net that often.  He was truly great.  Since he isn’t playing anymore, this role suits him and this team.   Tom Stillman is the rare owner who understands what a team needs and how to reengage a fan base.  He is sincere and not just another suit with empty promises.  Stillman, together with general manager Doug Armstrong and head coach Ken Hitchcock, are driven to score this town a cup.

While he is unable to score goals or suit up these days, Brett Hull is a giant step in the Cup Crazy direction.   The Blues front office, long known for being maddeningly inconsistent, is really taking shape and turning into a no-nonsense crew.  The Blues season is almost a month away.

-DLB