Any idea when MacDonald and Perron will return? What a boost that would be for the surging Blues....
Perron has been practicing with the team for several weeks now. He recently took off the no contact jersey as well. Barring set backs he should be back in the line-up sometime in the next few weeks.
There has been little news about Andy though, which is probably bad news.
I think it's interesting the Blues are being so successful even without much production from Berglund and Stewart. Not many teams have the depth to win games without two production from two of their top forwards.
I'm glad they are winning, but they aren't doing it too convincingly ha. Really need to get the PP, Berglund and Stewart going before they are a legitimate threat. Defense and goaltending have been absolutely stellar lately though.
Uhh what? Maybe not on the score sheet but they're outplaying the majority of the teams they are playing. Convincingly.
Any idea when MacDonald and Perron will return? What a boost that would be for the surging Blues....
As said, Perron is just about to come back, I expect it will be against the Blackhawks on Saturday night. Home game with a few days off after it to see how things go.
As for McDonald, he still has symptoms so no idea with any timeframe for his return.
As a fan, it is very frustrating, and a very valid point btw. Those reasons alone are why we don't see more 4-5 goals in one game.
Also, I would have rather this thread had never been started.
Why don't you wish this thread ever been started? I posted it a while back and just bumped it again. That's all. If you are thinking about a jinx and the fate of our team relying on a post on HF boards then we have bigger problems.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stlblues9
Uhh what? Maybe not on the score sheet but they're outplaying the majority of the teams they are playing. Convincingly.
Agreed. Tonight the Blues weren't amazing at all and we scraped by with a W but most games as of late have been fantastic W's for the Blues.
Also just wanted to add that on Berglund and Stewart - yes, they need to get it going. It's great that Backes is coming around. Gettin help from guys like Sobotka and Russel have been great too. And how about Shatty? If Bergy and Stew get going then Perron and McDonald come back. Wow.
Also just wanted to add that on Berglund and Stewart - yes, they need to get it going. It's great that Backes is coming around. Gettin help from guys like Sobotka and Russel have been great too. And how about Shatty? If Bergy and Stew get going then Perron and McDonald come back. Wow.
Not everyone will be going at the same time. It just doesn't work like that for some reason. Once Stew and Berglund wake up, another few will go in a slump. That's just how the game of hockey works.
Not everyone will be going at the same time. It just doesn't work like that for some reason. Once Stew and Berglund wake up, another few will go in a slump. That's just how the game of hockey works.
Very true.
I am fine with that too. Just as long as the TEAM can stay consistent and keep collecting points I think were good.
What? Did you go into all the threads about Varlamov and the Avs and say the same thing earlier in the season? What about all the other posts in this section talking about how great Player X or Team Y is doing? I mean I understand, you gotta be pretty depressed with how CBJ is performing but there is no reason to rain on the parade of teams that are doing good. That's called envy and your post here REEKS of it. Also, at least you can go to stores around STL and get Blues gear instead of only being able to get your gear at the stadium or online like in Columbus. You guys are easily one of the next teams to move. Start getting used to singing O'Canada or having to fly to Kansas City to see your team.
I'm surprised... surprised by your post. You haven't watched any of the Blues games since Hitch took over have you? You just look at the scores I posted and assume that it's "checking every team to death... boring games" How can a game with lots of checking be boring? Not only that but a win is a win. Period. Also, ask ANY Blues fan or really anybody who has actually watched the Blues these past 5 games if they have been boring games.
The thing is we haven't really heard about McDonalds progress which hopefully isn't a bad sign.
So far Elliott is 7-1-0 with a .947 sv% and a 1.43 GAA. People forget that he is still young and that he was a MONSTER at Wisconsin. His years in Ottawa and Colorado weren't exactly on cup contending or even playoff contending teams. Elliott is performing better than expected and Halak is performing worse than expected as a whole this season. However both have got at least 2 games under Hitch and both looked great in their respective games. Each one had a shutout during this home-stand.
the first part of this retort is simply uneducated......
that being said, they looked okay here tonight.. both teams could have played a lot better. Happy for Hitch, though. Always liked him as a hockey mind.
Uhh what? Maybe not on the score sheet but they're outplaying the majority of the teams they are playing. Convincingly.
Agreed, especially with convincingly. Their overall puck possession and defensive game is impressive. Their offense has very little "pure skill", save Oshie and Stewart, but their forwards all know how to work a cycle and they forecheck relentlessly, again except Stewart here.
On the backend, Polak and Jackman have been really really solid. Both just extremely simple, no nonesense defensive play. Shattenkirk has done his job, you can't ask for much more from him. He's been good overall, but not as solid as Polak/Jackman/Pie, especially defensively.
Pietrangelo is just in a class of his own. There are very few games this year, I think I count 3 in my head, where Pie has not been the best player on either team. And its not even a dominance that is very apparent, but just all these subtle little pauses with the puck or puck reversals that consolidate possession in a slightly chaotic situation. You really have to be looking for it almost, in order to see it. When he pinches, he always gets to it, when he commits to a check, he always eliminates/pins his man, etc..
His control of the ice lets them play their weakest defender on his pairing for 17-19 min a night, which is soooo valuable. It lets you balance out your other pairings and literally, that one player makes your whole dcore so much better.
Cole has been whatever, you dont even notice him on the ice, which is impressive since Pie/Cole are against the other team's best on a nightly basis. And he isn't even doing anything, just moving the puck along when it gets to him, so kudos to him for that. He's doing an adequate job of simply keeping the puck moving.
Its really quite criminal that Pietrangelo isn't getting any recognition leaguewide. Quite frankly, he's the best defender I've seen play in the last...3-4 years.
the first part of this retort is simply uneducated......
that being said, they looked okay here tonight.. both teams could have played a lot better. Happy for Hitch, though. Always liked him as a hockey mind.
Agree, both teams could have been a lot better tonight.
They're going to need to prove they can get it done on the road. They just had what, an 8 game homestand? Almost every team in the NHL is world beaters at home this year. Nothing proven yet.
They're going to need to prove they can get it done on the road. They just had what, an 8 game homestand? Almost every team in the NHL is world beaters at home this year. Nothing proven yet.
It was a 5 game home stand. Against some good teams. Also, they've played more on the road than at home overall. Yeah their home record is better than road but thats not really unusual. 5-6-1 on the road isn't that bad.
I think it's the new coach effect. Hitch has the effect of coming on great the 1st year and then regressing the next couple.
Most teams, when they get a new coach, go on a hot streak for a few weeks. I'm not sour about losing Hitch, and hope he has success. He is what he is though and wouldn't count on this type of play to continue. The Blues will need more going forward if they're going to continue this success. Can't rely on giving up less than 1.6 goals a game.
They're going to need to prove they can get it done on the road. They just had what, an 8 game homestand? Almost every team in the NHL is world beaters at home this year. Nothing proven yet.
Since Hitchcock was hired the Blues are 2-0-1 on the road. One was against a dominant home team in Pittsburgh. Minnesota is pretty good at home and Columbus isn't actually too bad at home either. It's a small sample size but they're playing very well right now, regardless of whether it's on the road or at home.
Watching the Blues closely, I really don't think it's a honeymoon period -- sure, it plays a part, but the buy-in to Hitch's defensive system is very evident, and is very effective. The Blues are a big, fast team that -before Hitch- played a VERY structured, non-aggressive system. Now, they're playing the opposite -- and it's working.
I don't expect them to maintain this impressive of a defensive pace all-year, but eventually, more time will be spend on the offense and/or it will ignite.
If it doesn't -- we'll almost assuredly be stuck fighting for a final playoff spot.
The Blues are going to go on a losing streak here shortly if a few things don't happen.
1) Berglund, Stewart, and Dags need to start scoring. We can't rely on Steen, Oshie, and Backes to be the only offensive threat. Petro can't save us every night with a late goal.
2) The defense (including the forwards) need to stop giving up odd man rushes. If Elliott and Halak play like this all year then great, but odds are they won't and when they slip a lot of these odd man rushes are going to turn into goals.
3) We need Perron to come back and stay healthy. We are in desperate need of a playmaker on that Berglund and Stewart line.
The Blues should have the talent to be a 100 point team, but haven't been able to put forth anything more than a few good stretches followed by utter mediocrity.
Hitch should be able to get this team to the playoffs, but right now it's still the "honeymoon" phase so we'll need to revisit in about 30 games.
It's early in the year still, these numbers aren't super accurate but as a rough gauge as to how St. Louis is playing..
Score tied Fenwick %: 55.35 (3rd)
Score close Fenwick %: 55.63 (2nd)
Down 1 Fenwick %: 57.71 (6th)
Down 2 Fenwick %: 68.32 (1st)
Underlying numbers are all good - they aren't just being buoyed by excellent (and likely unsustainable) goaltending..
And they were almost as terrific in terms of possession last season as well, the goaltending they were receiving was just the polar opposite of what it is now. The Central Division is easily the best in hockey.
They are playing Some great hockey. But teams slump, and what makes a great team is how they respond to that slump. Some teams slump and never return. The great teams respond. So I'm going to reserve my "oh uh Detroit has to play the Blues next" moments until they face some adversity and respond like cup contenders.
