Blues shake three-game slide, sweep four-game homestand with structure, goaltending, timely goals

Third four-game or better winning streak this season has Blues first in the 

Western Conference; Barbashev, Binnington practice, MacEachern doesn't

By LOU KORAC
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- A little home cooking went a long way in helping cure some ails in the Blues' game.

When they limped home following a 5-2 loss at Buffalo that produced the first three-game losing streak in regulation in more than 13 months, the Blues (22-8-6) did what they normally do best: nip it in the bud and get back on thw winning track.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

The Blues took to the outdoors on Thursday at Centene Community Ice

Center for practice, their first on the outdoor sheet known as 'The Barn'

They did so with wins over Vegas (4-2), Chicago (4-3), Colorado (5-2) and Edmonton (2-1).

"You lose a couple in a row, you're trying to change the momentum," Blues defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said. "It's always nice to come home. You're on the road there for a while. It was nice to come home and kind of take a mental break from being gone for so long. I think everyone feels a little bit recharged now and have a chance to get home and see our families, sleep in our own bed and kind of get in a routine again."

The Blues outscored the opposition 16-8 and they did it with solid goaltending from both Jordan Binnington and Jake Allen, they did it with a defensive structure known to be smothering and they got timely goals from key people as well as some depth scoring.

It all added up to the third winning streak of four games or more and has the Blues atop the Western Conference with 50 points, 16 points better than where they were at this time last season (15-17-4).

"I think one of the best things we're doing is we're taking it one game at a time, and we still haven't been perfect," Blues center Ryan O'Reilly said. "There are still mistakes that we're making and our plan, I think, is to keep building for the playoffs. We have to get to our best game and continue to grow every day. When we do the right things, you can see we're able to find ways to win games, and obviously our goaltending's been outstanding, helped us out a ton. When we do the right things, we give ourselves opportunities to win and we've got to keep growing. It's not going to get any easier on us and we have to keep getting better.

"... At times, we're close. We're close to our best game. It's never going to be perfect, there's always going to be a little ditch, but we're responding well within the game and finding ways to adjust and respond."

The Blues used Thursday's practice before jetting off for a two-game trip to California to take on San Jose Saturday and Los Angeles Monday before the Christmas break to get in some skill work done inside before heading outside to the outdoor rink to The Barn for a little 3-on-3 play.

Coach Craig Berube rewarded the players for a fine week of hockey with some fun while getting the work on. But even as a coach, there are things he'll worry about.

"There's always concerns, there's always things you want to get better at," Berube said. "It's just a day-to-day, game-to-game stuff. We always try to retool our guys and dial them back in to do certain things better. But last two games to me were pretty good. Playing two high-end teams with really high-end skill and I thought that we did a real good job of shutting them down, keeping them on the outside, playing a real good team game. When we play like that, we're a real hard team to beat."

That high-end skill included limiting Colorado's MacKinnon (one assist) and Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl (one assist), who have combined for 169 points this season, to two assists, and O'Reilly drew the assignments as the shutdown line to help thwart those stars.

"I think for us, it helps find the simplicity when we know we're playing these big guns, they play a ton of minutes, they're going to be out there a lot," O'Reilly said. "I think it really helps narrow our focus on our mindset defensively. I know for myself, I'm not worried about trying to create. I need to play hard and make it tough on these top guys, and you can see we put ourselves in a good spot. Everyone kind of has that mindset if we play a good, defensive game."

That defensive game includes, for the Blues, playing tight as a five-man unit.

"We're playing as five, right," Pietrangelo said. "You've heard us say it before, if we play as five, we're tough to beat. When you have guys like we've faced these last couple games that can beat five guys by themselves, you need five guys to jump on the coverage and everyone's buying into that process. When you have that mindset throughout your lineup, it's easy to defend."

* NOTES -- Blues goalie Jordan Binnington, who didn't practice Tuesday and was the backup to Jake Allen Wednesday, skipped the indoor portion of practice Thursday before popping outside for the 3-on-3 portion of practice.

The Blues have maintained that Binnington is just getting some much-needed rest and made no mention of any ailments. 

Binnington has started 26 games this season, which was the second-most among starters this season, with Allen only making his 11th appearance and 10th start against the Oilers.

"I think he's played a lot this year and obviously going back to last year in the playoffs, short summer, I think we're managing him pretty well," Berube said of Binnington. "'Binner' probably wants to play every game, just like every other player, but we've got to make sure that he's rested and he's feeling good. That's important. Like I said all year long, we need both goalies, and we're getting good goaltending from both goalies."

For the record, Berube said he hasn't decided who will be the starter Saturday against the Sharks.

* As for forward Ivan Barbashev, who's missed the past two games with an upper-body injury, he skated Thursday and is geared to return on Saturday.

"He felt good today, so we'll see how he does tomorrow," Berube said. "... I think it is (a possibility for Saturday). It looks like it is right now, but I can't make that determination until I see him tomorrow."

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Ivan Barbashev (left) and David Perron take a draw during Thursday's 3v3

practice on the outdoor sheet.

* Forward Tyler Bozak, who missed the game Wednesday after showing up to the rink sick, did not practice Thursday, but Berube said he'll skate tomorrow. If he does, look for him to play Saturday.

"Bozie will be fine," Berube said. "He'll come in tomorrow and will probably go on the ice a little bit. We'll see how he feels, but he's feeling better today."

* Forward Mackenzie MacEachern, who scored his third game-winning goal of his young career Wednesday. has an upper-body injury and did not practice Thursday. Berube said it's nothing related to Wednesday's game and more something that's been bothering MacEachern, who has six goals in 29 games.

"We'll re-evaluate him tomorrow," Berube said. "He's had something nagging him, so we're taking a look at it. We wanted to keep him off today and then we'll see how he is tomorrow."

In winning fourth straight, Blues shut down game's best after 2-1 win over Oilers

Hold Colorado's MacKinnon, Edmonton's McDavid, Draisaitl to two 

assists past two games; trio are NHL's top three scorers at 169 points 

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- There are superstars in the NHL, the ones that people pay lots of money to see. They're the kinds of the players that get fans in the edge of their seats and make the kinds of plays that are rare.

It takes special kinds of talent to do the things that some of the top stars in the league do today, and it's also a special talent for the opposition to try and shut them down.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Blues forward Zach Sanford (12) looks to defend against Oilers captain

Connor McDavid in St. Louis' 2-1 win at Enterprise Center on Wednesday.

In the past two games, the Blues have faced the game's three top point producers. On Monday, it was Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon. On Wednesday, it was the Edmonton dynamic duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

And in winning their fourth straight, 2-1 over the Oilers in front of 18,096 at Enterprise Center, the Blues (22-8-6) held the trio to a combined two assists (one for MacKinnon and one for Draisaitl).

McDavid (59 points), Draisaitl (58) and MacKinnon (52) have combined for 169 points this season. This is no surprise, though. This is what the Blues do.

It's not some complex formula that the Blues are using to thwart the game's best. So what is it all about?

"Just committing to defense. That's all it is, taking care of pucks," said Blues center Brayden Schenn, who matched up against Draisaitl's line Wednesday and scored the opening goal of the game. "We know when we play top players, we've got a lot of horses on the back end that frustrate those top guys. When the forwards chip in and help defend, we feel like we make it hard on those guys because they have a lot of skill and you have to try and find ways to frustrate them.

"You try and shut them down the best you can. They're going to get chances, they're going to get opportunities, they're probably going to get points, but at the end of the day, you try and play hard defensively. I think especially our D, we have a lot of guys there on the back end that can frustrate a lot of guys around the league with how well they skate and how well they defend. We've seen that the past couple games here."

MacKinnon has such speed and skill, can turn players into cork screws on a dime, beat you on the edge, much like McDavid can with his lightning-fast skating. Draisaitl is more direct, can be deceptively fast and has a lethal shot. 

Hello Jay Bouwmeester and Colton Parayko, who were on the ice when McDavid was and to Ryan O'Reilly, who assisted on Mackenzie MacEachern's third-period goal to make it 2-0, shadowed McDavid all over the ice. O'Reilly finished with 23:28 ice time for the game.

And for guys like that, limiting their real estate is the best recipe.

"Just taking away their time and space, really," said Blues goalie Jake Allen, who made 35 saves to improve to 6-2-2 on the season with a 2.21 goals-against average and .930 save percentage. "A lot of it just goes to our d-core get handed the job most of the time. It's a big job for our centers to stay on top of those guys, those fast, big, strong centers like McDavid and Draisaitl, especially when they're split up. 

"You obviously get 'O'Ry' and whoever else. Usually it's Bozie [Tyler Bozak], but whoever stepped in tonight shut those guys down. That's their job. It's 90 percent of the time 'Bouw' and 'Pary' out there against those guys and you've got to give them all the credit in the world. Bouw's a guy that doesn't get any accolades really outside the locker room. He's a well-respected player in here and guys know how important he is for us."

It can be a difficult task to ask a player to focus on being a shutdown guy rather than being the one to go out and be the playmaker, but in coach Craig Berube's system, it's predicated on limiting time and space from those players and taking away as many opportunities as they're used to.

"The guys that are on the ice against those guys, they're all focused on shutting them down," Berube said. "They really are, with the puck and without the puck. They do a good job when they have the puck of keeping it and being patient with it, hanging onto it and slowing them down. And when they don't have it, everybody's really cautious and have got good sticks, backtracking and they're tight on them. They don't give them time and space. When you have that focus from your team, that buy-in, then they can shut them down.

"We had numbers back and we were tight. We weren't loose. We were tight. We held our blue line a lot tonight. Either we had good sticks at them, killed it or they had to dump it in, and Jake did a good job of moving the puck, broke out of our zone."

And in the case of the Oilers, who came in with the NHL's No. 1 power-play unit at 31.4 percent and with at least a goal in eight straight games, the Blues put an end to that streak, going a perfect 4-for-4.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Blues center Ryan O'Reilly (left) takes the puck at Edmonton defenseman

Oscar Klefbom during action Wednesday at Enterprise Center. 

And when the Oilers have a power-play, and in Wednesday's case, an extra attacker on the ice, and even a 6-on-4 when the Blues were handed a delay of game penalty for a late goalie interference challenge on James Neal's goal with 1:50 remaining, it's nonstop McDavid and Draisaitl on the ice, and when those guys walk off the ice feeling empty-handed, there's a good feeling to the job that you did in keeping them off the scoresheet.

"It's a good feeling. Those guys are world-class players," said Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo, who saw the most penalty kill time among Blues players at 4:24. "I think when we play our tight-checking game, it's not all the back end. Our tight-checking game starts in the o-zone. It starts with forwards tracking, tight gaps. You put 'Bouw' and 'Pary,' the way they can skate and their sticks against any high-end talent in the world, they're going to do a job. 

"We've gotten to our identity here and that's a big part of it."

(12-18-19) Oilers-Blues Gameday Lineup

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- The Blues were able to withstand one challenge of a superstar player on Monday and now get set for a dynamic duo on Wednesday to close out a four-game homestand.

After throttling Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon in a 5-2 win on Monday, the Blues (21-8-6) play host to Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the Edmonton Oilers (19-13-4) today at 7:30 p.m. (FS-MW, ESPN 101.1-FM).

The Blues seem to rise to the occasion against the league's top players, and even though MacKinnon had one assist on Monday, the Blues were able to contain Colorado's top point producer. They'll again have their hands full with McDavid, who leads the NHL with 59 points (20 goals, 39 assists) and leads his teammate Draisaitl by two (21 goals, 36 assists).

"With the high end talent, for sure. They play different games, styles, the teams, but when you've got Draisaitl and McDavid, you've got to be on your toes and checking, all five guys out there have to be aware out there," Blues coach Craig Berube said. 

Special teams will be a key. The Oilers have a power play goal in eight straight games (10-for-30).

"Every game is different but last time we played Edmonton (a 5-2 win on Nov. 6), I thought we did a good job," Berube said. "McDavid got a goal on the power play. That's the other thing. Their power play is lethal. We've got to be disciplined tonight and when we get penalties, we really have to bear down on the PK."

- - -

Jake Allen will start for the Blues against the Oilers tonight, giving Jordan Binnington a much-needed breather.

It will mark Allen's thirs start on home ice and fifth appearance since Jan. 8 of last season. It will be just his 10th start of the season and 11th appearance.

In Binnington's case, he had a maintenance day on Tuesday and did not practice; he took the ice for an optional Wednesday morning and got in a light workout.

Binnington has started 26 of the Blues' 35 games this season.

"It's just more rest for him than anything right now," Berube said of Binnington, who is 16-6-4 with a 2.44 goals-against average and .920 save percentage. 'He's played a lot of hockey this year, even going back to last year. We're just trying to be cautious with him."

Emergency extraordinaire Tyler Stewart, who was on the ice for practice in Binnington's place Tuesday, was a third goalie Wednesday.

"We've got the other goalie out there. It gives guys confidence too, shooting on him," Berube said laughing.

- - -

Injured forward Ivan Barbashev (upper body) took the ice Wednesday morning before his teammates with Sammy Blais (wrist). Berube said Barbashev is progressing but will miss a second straight game tonight.

"Barbashev did better today, so that's a good sign," Berube said.

As for defenseman Carl Gunnarsson, who has a cast on his left arm and is on injured-reserve, Berube said there's nothing new to report.

"No, nothing really to note," Berube said. "Really on Gunnarsson, it's sort of a waiting period with him right now.

"Probably day to day I guess. Again, it's a waiting thing with him. He's got to see how everything goes. That's hard for me to tell."

- - -

Friends off the ice, foes on it. That's how it goes with buddies Brayden Schenn and MacKinnon.

The two became friends as teammates for Canada at the World Championships, in 2013 and 2015, and in doing so, they've become golf buddies during the summer in a quartet that includes Tyson Barrie and ... Sidney Crosby.

That golf trip remained in tact after the Blues won the Stanley Cup last season.

"We go on a golf trip every year, so it was after they won, we go on a golf trip," MacKinnon said. "It's not just because they won, we've been doing it for five, six years now. (MacKinnon knows Schenn) from World Championships. I played World Championships when I was 18 with him and again when I was 20, and Tyson Barrie, who's one of my best friends, is really close with Brayden from junior days. We all played World Championships together and we just went on a vacation. We went to France and every year since then, it's an annual trip, the four of us. We go to different places every year. We literally talk about it all season of where the trip is next year."

Schenn and MacKinnon got connected because of their mutual friendship with Barrie, a defenseman with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season but who has played his career before being traded with the Avalanche.

"I'm buddies with originally Tyson Barrie, who played junior with my brother [Luke Schenn]," Schenn said. "I played some Team Canada stuff with him and we've become real close friends over the years and obviously they played together so it kind of came full circle with that. We've all done some golf trips with each other.

"We get together once a summer now. We've been to California, Dallas, Montreal. Good guys. I train under the same guy too, Andy O'Brien. We do that Vail camp in September too. We're kind of underneath the same umbrella together and we became buddies."

MacKinnon said he was happy for Schenn, being able to raise the Cup last summer.

"It was fun to watch them play in the playoffs I think," MacKinnon said. "I'm friends with Brayden, really close with Brayden, so watching him win and watching how deep their team is, it was pretty cool."

Schenn said MacKinnon's drive to win one himself is evident though.

He'd like to win one himself, no doubt about it. No jealousy there," Schenn said. "I think he's obviously maybe a little bit jealous, but he's not going to be ... he was happy for us. ... If you play each other on the ice or in the playoffs, it's game on. There's no friends. It's just how it goes. You can be friends off the ice, but I think when playoffs hit or meaningful games, you've got to take your job seriously and play hard."

- - -

The Blues' projected lineup:

Jaden Schwartz-Brayden Schenn-Jordan Kyrou

Oskar Sundqvist-Ryan O'Reilly-David Perron

Zach Sanford-Robert Thomas-Alexander Steen

Mackenzie MacEachern-Jacob de la Rose-Troy Brouwer

Justin Faulk-Alex Pietrangelo

Jay Bouwmeester-Colton Parayko

Vince Dunn-Robert Bortuzzo

Jake Allen will start in goal; Jordan Binnington will be the backup.

Healthy scratch includesNiko Mikkola. Vladimir Tarasenko (shoulder), Sammy Blais (wrist), Carl Gunnarsson (upper body) and Ivan Barbashev (upper body). Tyler Bozak was a late scratch due to illness.

- - -

The Oilers' projected lineup:

Joakim Nygard-Connor McDavid-Zack Kassian

James Neal-Leon Draisaitl-Sam Gagner

Jujhar Khaira-Ryan Nugent-Hopkins-Alex Chiasson

Riley Sheahan-Gaetan Haas-Josh Archibald

Oscar Klefbom-Adam Larsson

Darnell Nurse-Ethan Bear

Kris Russell-Caleb Jones

Mikko Koskinen will start in goal; Mike Smith will be the backup.

Heathy scratches include Markus Granlund, Patrick Russell and Brandon Manning. Matt Benning (head) is out.

Western Conference showdown remains one-sided after Blues top Avs 5-2

St. Louis owns six straight wins against Colorado, 17 of past 20; 

Perron fifth NHL hat trick, second-period power-play goals fuel victory

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- It was dubbed as a statement game, one in which the Colorado Avalanche said all the right things and were looking forward to the challenge of going toe-to-toe with the Blues knowing they're the defending Stanley Cup champs.

A Western Conference showdown, if you will.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

The Blues and Brayden Schenn (10) have physically had their way with 

Nikita Zadorov (16) and the Avalanche. St. Louis won 5-2 on Monday.

Avalanche goalie Philipp Grubauer said at the morning skate that it's no measuring stick for them, that it's more all about the Avalanche and their game.

Well, the Avs goalie is right, but in a different sense. It is about them, but he should have been referring to the Blues, who continued their recent dominance of their biggest threat in the Central Division and Western Conference following a thorough 5-2 win on a snowy Monday night at Enterprise Center that saw 15,263 brave the elements.

For the Blues (21-8-6), who have won three in a row and seven of 10, they increased their lead to three points over the Avalanche (21-9-3) and have defeated them six straight times and amazingly, 17 of the past 20 matchups.

If this were a boxing match, the white towel would have been thrown in many rounds ago, because this has been a one-sided fight. Even though there have been a number of close, tightly-contested games, the Blues seem to find a way to neutralize Colorado's high-octane offense with a smothering, suffocating, hard-hitting, tight-checking, puck cycling style that the Avalanche just can't seem to handle.

The Avalanche have come to town twice this season riding high. The first time on Oct. 21, it was a season-opening eight-game point streak (7-0-1), only to see the Blues douse the flames with a 3-1 win. And on Monday, Colorado came in riding a nine-game point streak (8-0-1) and the Blues again showed who rules the roost.

"We play them really tight," said Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo, who exchanged unpleasantries with Nathan MacKinnon in the second period. "I think when you have a pretty high offensive team, especially a guy like MacKinnon over there, we know what he's capable of, we seem to tighten up pretty good. Those guys over there, it takes five guys to defend and we defended with five guys tonight, so we had success.

"Even when we are (flying), they're going to get chances. The guy (has got) 50 points for a reason. We just got to limit the second opportunities, limit the chances they're going to get and I thought we did a pretty good job of that."

Defenseman Robert Bortuzzo set the tone early with a heavy hit on Avalanche forward Tyson Jost, a big, clean hit behind the Blues net. It's the way you have to play skill forwards by limiting their time and space, not allow them to get those skates revved up and puck dangle in your zone.

The Avalanche had a big push when they took a 2-1 lead in the second after David Perron, who scored his fifth NHL hat trick, and the Blues thoroughly dominated the first period and grabbed a 1-0 lead. But the Blues pushed back, scored two power-play goals by Perron and Vince Dunn in a 36-second span late in the second, retook the momentum and carried it into the third period with a clinical 20 minutes of hockey.

"I really liked our first period," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "The second, we got scored on, it set us back a little bit. They had a couple power plays and they scored on the one. They had the momentum but we got it back. I thought we got it back before our power plays, a little bit, started to get going and get in the offensive zone and then the power play came through.

"I thought we played a pretty solid game. That's a tough team. They're fast, man. They've got a lot of speed and I thought our guys did a real good job. Binner, he had to make saves and he made saves."

The Blues, who outshot the Avalanche 15-6 in the first, were getting outshot at one point 13-2 in the second, and the Avalanche had tilted the ice to one end, but the Blues got the final seven shots of the period, as Berube said, grabbed the momentum before the power-play goals, and took control in the third.

Jordan Kyrou scored a highlight-reel goal to make it 4-2 at 11:24, and Perron completed his hat trick with an empty-netter at 16:05.

But it was the way the Blues won the third. They kept pushing, they kept taking it to the Avalanche and kept the puck away from them. They didn't allow them to generate speed through the neutral zone, didn't turn pucks over that feeds Colorado's engine.

The result speaks for itself.

"There's never a point to panic regardless of the situation," Perron said. "It was nice. We hadn't scored (a power-play goal) in a couple few games now. ... It was nice to get one and then to follow it up with another one by Dunner, nice play by Bozie [Tyler Bozak]. Obviously you're down 2-1 with a few minutes left in the second and all of the sudden, it's 3-2 for us going in here. It was certainly nice."

Dunn said, "I think they're a very good team with four lines. We're the same way. Today, we didn't let them take over transitionally. We played well in all three zones and limited Grade-A chances. I just think rolling over all four lines and not letting the foot off the gas. It was big for our power play to score those goals, but I think overall, we were playing pretty good hockey."

There will be three more matchups against the Avalanche this season. All three come in Colorado, and the Avalanche will be licking their chops to finally put a stake in the Blues because as well as they've started, as many skill players as they have, until they can crack the Blues' system, this will stay a one-sided fight.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo (41) lays a check on Avalanche center

Nazim Kadri during action Monday at Enterprise Center.

"It can be at times (the matchup)," Berube said. "I think our guys really get keyed up to play against MacKinnon and them guys. It seems like we really kind of thrive on that stuff, especially our 'D.' They get pumped up to play against good players like that. They do a good job of making sure they're not going to score."

And in doing so, the Blues have implemented the perfect blueprint how to contain the Avalanche, and as long as they execute it, those "Kroenke sucks!" chants will remain alive and well.

(12-16-19) Avalanche-Blues Gameday Lineup

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- A Central Division showdown is set for a snowy Monday when the top two teams will collide.

The Blues (20-8-6, 46 points) host the Colorado Avalanche (21-8-3) at 7 p.m. (FS-MW, ESPN 101.1-FM) in a matchup of not only the top teams in the division but also the top teams in the Western Conference.

The Blues, who are coming off an improbable 4-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks when they overcame a 3-0 third-period deficit to win for the first time in franchise history in regulation and second time ever, already own one win over Colorado, 3-1 on Oct. 21 here at Enterprise Center.

St. Louis has defeated Colorado five straight times dating to the final game of the 2017-18 regular season.

"There's a tendency for our group when we play against those high-level teams, we seem to just show up and be more consistent with it," Blues center Ryan O'Reilly said. "We know it's going to be a hard game and I think we're a little more prepared for it. ... I think we all to a man know we have to be on tonight or these guys will make us pay."

The Blues will have to play a tight-checking game, play more defensive-oriented and shut down Colorado's high-powered offense led by Nathan MacKinnon. The Avalanche come in riding a nine-game point streak (8-0-1), but when they came to St. Louis earlier this season, they were 7-0-1.

"I don't have an answer. I think we do a good job checking against these guys," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "We know how skilled they are, their top guys. I think our guys get dialed in and do a good job without the puck for sure and checking, because you have to.

"It's important that we hang onto the puck tonight in the offensive zone and keep it, force them to play 200 feet, force them to play defense, frustrate them. That's how we've had success against them. We have to do the same. They're a very good team. Four lines deep in my opinion."

The Blues know they'll have to be defensive-minded, know they'll have to pick their chances to attack, but keeping the Avalanche and their goal-scoring prowess to a minimum will be key.

"They've got a lot of skill and a lot of speed," Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist said. "Obviously they've got some really good lines that we need to keep an eye on, but for us, it's more playing our game, finding our game and doing that for 60 minutes.

"Playing simple, playing our game, get the pucks deep and don't turn it over at the blue line. If you're turning it over tonight, it's going to be a long night. So you just have to get the pucks in and go to work. We know we're strong down low. That's what we need to do. It feel like we've been playing one of our better games every time we play against these guys. I think especially our D has been playing unreal against Colorado. We just need to keep doing the same thing tonight. They're going to get their chances. They're a really skilled team. We need to make sure we're playing tight in the defensive zone and attack as a five-man unit."

- - -

Blues forward Ivan Barbashev joins the crowd among the injured and will miss tonight's game with an upper-body injury.

Barbashev missed the third period of Saturday's win against the Blackhawks after being checked in the offensive zone by Chicago's Dennis Gilbert. His head smacked the back glass and presumably, he could be in concussion protocol, but Berube said he is day-to-day.

"He's day-to-day right now. That's where it's at right now," Berube said.

Zach Sanford, who's missed the past three games, including the first two because of his own concussion protocol, will jump into his role with O'Reilly and David Perron.

"I feel good. We took care of everything, checked all the boxes and I'm ready to go tonight," Sanford said. "I think everybody knows how big tonight is. It's the middle of the season, but we're battling right there with them for the top of the West and they're a really god team and have been playing really well. We're going to have to bring our best and it should be a fun game. If we can just frustrate them on their chances, we're going to get our own and we'll be able to take advantage of those.

"We've had a lot of stuff like that happen this year, especially like you said where one guy's coming out and the other guy's coming back in. I think that just shows the depth of our team. The next guy who's coming in is always showing up doing his job. I'll have to stick to that plan, show up tonight and do my job."

In his past 11 games, Sanford had seven points (two goals, five assists) and was a plus-4.

"He was way more aggressive with and without the puck," Berube said. "I felt he was getting on the forecheck more and being physical and winning those puck battles. He's got good hands and good skill. I just thought he was doing that kind of stuff more than anything, managing the puck a lot better. Getting it in deep, making the right plays with the puck. He's got all those tools and he's big. He's a smart player. He's got to will himself a little bit more, and when that's what he's doing, he's getting results."

- - -

The Blues used Justin Faulk and Alex Pietrangelo in the third period of Saturday's win and will go back to that pairing to at least start tonight.

It also means the Colton Parayko-Jay Bouwmeester shutdown pairing will be back together to go against Colorado's top dogs.

"They've been a very good pair for a long time, but with the addition of Faulk, we've got to move guys around, and depending with [Carl] Gunnarsson, [Robert] Bortuzzo, lefty-right combos and things like that," Berube said. "The other night, third period, Petro and Faulk played together and were part of three goals for us. We'll see how it goes. We don't like it any more than they do, mixing and matching all the time, but it's just what it is. So we've got to make it work."

- - -

O'Reilly took time away from the game Friday to do a rendition of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' for the kids on Friday after an autograph signing at Fan Cave Sports in Chesterfield.

O'Reilly, who signed and posed for pictures with a few hundred fans, then read to the kids in a packed room surrounded by none other than Santa Claus.

And how did he do?

"Ooh, I'd say B-plus," O'Reilly said. "I jumbled a few words, but the crowd was pretty energetic. It was packed with kids. They had a blast. It was kind of fun to feed off of them.

"I read it to my little guy a couple nights before just to kind of make sure. It's a little tough, but I got through it. ... It's easier to answer questions than it is to read. I'm not too good at it, but I just had to pace myself a little bit."

- - -

MacKinnon, who is third in the NHL with 50 points in 32 games, fifth in assists (30) and tied for fourth in goals (20), has high praise for the Blues and knows Colorado's recent futility against them.

"Not that fun, no," MacKinnon said. "These guys are such a good team and they're so hard to play against. There's a reason why they're the defending champions and they have a good chance of winning again. They're a deep team. Their top four d-men are the toughest to play against, I think. This game is for first in our division and the West so it's going to be a big one for the both of us.

"They're so big down low and they cycle the puck real well, they create a lot of o-zone time for themselves. Just got to try to keep them to the outside. They've got big bodies and good d-men. We've got to play our game at the end of the day and hopefully that's good enough to beat them."

Colorado, which leads the NHL in goals per game at 3.66, is used to the high-flying style and imposing their speed and skill on the opposition. But the Avalanche know that playing a grind game against the Blues is in the cards.

"I think I'm pretty versatile. I can play a grind type of game," MacKinnon said. "I think the key is just to stay patient. You're not going to get a ton of chances tonight. Just got to be ready when you get one or two and just try not to get frustrated against these guys, they're so good and try to win a 1-0 game tonight.

"That's the biggest challenge is to stay patient. You expect to not to dominate, but you expect to have a big influence on the game and some nights you don't have it against good teams like this. When I get my chances, I know I'll get a few tonight, I've got to be ready for them.

"When you get a guy like Parayko, who's 6-6 and can skate like the wind, I don't know if there's anybody else like him in the league. He's a horse and I played with him at World Championships as well. He's always such a nice guy and great player, and Bouwmeester with Pietrangelo, Faulk, [Vince] Dunn, all those guys can move and are tough to play against."

- - -

The Blues' projected lineup:

Jaden Schwartz-Brayden Schenn-Jordan Kyrou

Zach Sanford-Ryan O'Reilly-David Perron

Alexander Steen-Robert Thomas-Tyler Bozak 

Mackenzie MacEachern-Jacob de la Rose-Oskar Sundqvist

Justin Faulk-Alex Pietrangelo

Jay Bouwmeester-Colton Parayko 

Vince Dunn-Robert Bortuzzo

Jordan Binnington will start in goal; Jake Allen will be the backup. 

Healthy scratches will be Troy Brouwer and Niko Mikkola. Vladimir Tarasenko (shoulder), Sammy Blais (wrist), Carl Gunnarsson (upper body) and Ivan Barbashev (upper body) are out.

- - -

The Avalanche's projected lineup:

Andre Burakovsky-Nathan MacKinnon-Joonas Donskoi

Gabriel Landeskog-Nazem Kadri-Mikko Rantanen

Valeri Nichushkin-Pierre-Edouard Bellemare-Matt Calvert

Matt Nieto-Tyson Jost-J.T. Compher

Nikita Zadorov-Samuel Girard

Ryan Graves-Ian Cole

Calle Rosen-Mark Barberio

Philipp Grubauer will start in goal; Pavel Francouz will be the backup.

The healthy scratches are Vladislav Kamenev and Anton Lindholm. Erik Johnson (lower body), Cale Makar (upper body) and Colin Wilson (lower body) are out.

A comeback for the ages adds to Blues' chapter with 4-3 win over rival Blackhawks

Down 3-0 in the third period, Blues surge back and win game they dominated 

stats-wise, show kind of resolve that helped them win a championship 

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- There are games to store in the memory bank, wins are always nice but are often forgotten with time.

Not this one.

Not against this opponent.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Blues players (from left) Justin Faulk, Robert Thomas and Tyler Bozak all

celebrate Faulk's goal to help the Blues overcome a 3-0 deficit in defeating

the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 Saturday at Enterprise Center.

Seemingly dominating much of the game but trailing by three goals to the archrival Chicago Blackhawks in the third period, the Blues dug deep into their resiliency tank and sent 18,096 mostly blue-clad fans home boisterous.

They got one, then another, and another, and another, and in the end, instead of staring at an ugly loss to the Central Division bottom-feeder playing without a few key injured players, the Blues pulled out an improbable 4-3 win over the Blackhawks in a way that seemingly is indescribable yet fitting to the way the Blues started.

But go back to the Blues of last year and see their resolve, see what they went through to win it all and it's understandable why they were able to persevere through this. 

"Yeah for sure, this team went through so much last year, the ups and downs they had and obviously came out on top," said Blues forward Jacob de la Rose, who tied the game 3-3. "There's a lot of confidence in this room and we know if we stick with it, we're going to get rewarded. Same thing today, we never stop pushing. We just kept pushing and it was an awesome win."

Every statistic said the Blues (20-8-6) would win this game in a landslide after the first period. They were ahead 25-4 in Corsi, seemingly controlled the puck for most of the period, the shots on goal were 13-2, 5-on-5 scoring chances favored the Blues 12-1 and high danger scoring chances were 5-0 in favor of the Blues.

Yet, it was a 0-0 game thanks largely in part to Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford, who saved Chicago's 'Roar Bacon.' 

But Crawford couldn't save the Hawks' bacon in the third period.

"I don't think we were playing a bad game," said Blues defenseman Justin Faulk, whose game-winner with 2 minutes 26 seconds left completed the comeback. "I thought we were actually playing a pretty good game, limiting some of their chances. It could be a case of it just turned our way there the last half of that third period. It's just one of those nights that was a little weird probably, but I think we played a pretty good game from the start." 

In a game that the Blues should have dominated from the outset, the game of hockey can be cruel sometimes. What were the chances that they would allow the first goal somehow, then look up at the scorebord and wonder how.

Well, it happened, and early in the second, just 19 seconds in, a Brandon Saad wrister somehow found its way through and beat Jordan Binnington on the short side.

1-0. How in the world ... ?

The Blues kept pushing in the second, yet came up empty. Again. Crawford. Again. He was throwing all his wrenches at every opportunity.

The shot attempts were 47-22, shots on goal 27-11, 5-on-5 scoring chances were 25-5 (TWENTY-FIVE TO FIVE!) and 5-on-5 high danger scoring chances 10-1, all in favor of the Blues. But they trailed 1-0.

"I think we've been through a lot as a group, we stay even-keeled no matter what's going on," Bozak, who played in his 700th NHL game, said. "We don't get too high or too low. We know there's going to be stretches of the game that don't go your way and you've got to keep pushing. Luckily it worked out for us tonight."

It didn't look like it was going to work out when Saad scored again 30 seconds into the period to make it 2-0, then nemesis Patrick Kane made it 3-0 on a high-slot wrister at 4:16 to seal the deal, or so the Blackhawks thought.

In the famous words of Lee Corso, "Not so fast my friend!"

The turnaround was quick, and swift, and Bozak's first of two 24 seconds after Kane scored was what gave the Blues juice.

"Bozie got us an early one there, kept us alive and after that, we kept pushing," de la Rose said.

Did they ever.

Bozak scored again, with a little luck, off the right toe of his skate from the crease to make it 3-2 at 13:08. And de la Rose, off a nifty forecheck from Ryan O'Reilly and even a sweeter backhand sauce pass, with a heck of a backhand top shelf 12 seconds later tied the game 3-3 and shook the roof.

"First, I dumped it in and it wasn't a very good dump to be honest with you," de la Rose said. "I should have kept it away from Crawford, but 'O'Ry' made a good forecheck and he found me in the slot and I really didn't have time to put it on my forehand, so I shot it with my backhand and it's a good feeling to see it go in.

"I've got some secret weapons in my toolbox."

When de la Rose scored, it was academic that the Blues would win. The only question was when, and Faulk took the honors when he took a Robert Thomas feed, skated into the left face-off circle and beat a handcuffed Crawford.

The comeback was complete. The two points were bagged, and the Blues found a way, an unconventional way to win a game they dominated on the stat sheet.

They finished with a 65-40 Corsi edge, 38-22 in shots on goal, 32-13 in 5-on-5 scoring chances ad 14-2 in 5-on-5 high danger chances.

But this team simply isn't conventional. They overcame a three-goal deficit to win a game in regulation during the regular-season for the first time in Blues history, second time if you include the Nov. 29, 2000 game in Toronto in which they were down 4-0 heading into the third, 5-0 at one point before winning 6-5 in overtime.

(St. Louis Blues photo)

Robert Thomas, who had three assists for the Blues Saturday, defends a play

against Chicago's Alex Nylander.

"These are key," said Binnington, who made 19 saves. "It's not always going to be perfect. We stayed with it and we're going to use that and take it and go."

Faulk added, "You can get frustrated and you can get down. It's a good group in here, it's a veteran group. I don't think we ride that roller coaster of emotion too much. We were able to stick with it and build off the first one. It doesn't go like that all the time, but we'll take it."

Yes they will, and it couldn't have been a more memorable 1,500 straight game of public address announcing for extraordinaire Tom Calhoun.

(12-14-19) Blackhawks-Blues Gameday Lineup

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- Another injured Blues forward will mark his return to the lineup tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Alexander Steen will get back in after missing 16 games with a left high ankle sprain. Steen, who has five assists and is a plus-2 in 17 games this season, is likely to join the line with Ryan O'Reilly and David Perron.

The Blues (19-8-6) held an optional skate and didn't run lines, but Steen will go in for veteran Troy Brouwer, who will be a healthy scratch.

"I think the last week to 10 days was a little bit more frustrating  than the start," Steen said. "I think I was getting really close. It just couldn't get over that last thing, but I feel good and ready to go tonight, so I'm excited.

"I've had this (injury) too before. They're all a little bit different depending on ... I was a little bit younger the last time it happened. You know what you need to be doing for the injury, but also for conditioning and making sure you're ready to go when you get back as well."

Should Steen go on the second line, it will slide Tyler Bozak back to center the third line Ivan Barbashev and move Robert Thomas back to the right wing.

Steen will help the Blues, who are 1-3-0 their past four games but defeated Vegas 4-2 on Thursday to snap a three-game losing streak, tighten things up defensively and on the penalty kill too.

"He plays the right way and effort base, works extremely hard out there, does all the right things, both ends of the ice," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "Kills penalties. It's good to have him back.

"He'll definitely voice his opinion and make sure we're doing things the proper way, which is good to happen."

Steen is anxious and eager to get back into the battle with his teammates.

"Yeah, that's obviously why that last week is a little bit towards the frustrating side," Steen said. "You're itching to get back with the guys, so I'm excited to get back in with them tonight.

"... Tonight's a rivalry against Chicago on a Saturday night, so it should be a good atmosphere in the building and a fun one for me to get back into."

Also, Zach Sanford, who was in concussion protocol and missed the past two games, was on the ice and is healthy enough to play, but Berube chose not to put him back in just yet.

"He probably is," Berube said. "It was my decision to keep him out tonight."

- - -

Berube said that Carl Gunnarsson's upper-body injury shouldn't keep the defenseman out long-term, but being placed on injured-reserve will keep him out at least a week; he was injured Thursday against Vegas.

"I think so. I believe we'll know next week, the middle of the week, we'll know a lot more," Berube said. "That's probably a good timeline. We'll know a lot more in the middle of the week next week."

In the meantime, Niko Mikkola was on the ice for the optional practice Saturday morning but will not play; he was recalled on Friday from San Antonio of the American Hockey League to replace Gunnarsson's roster spot.

"Of course I'm excited. First time to get the call-up," Mikkola said. "I just try to enjoy and wait for (an) opportunity.

"... It feels different now. I feel like I earned it. I just try to work hard and wait for the opportunity and try to be ready."

Berube said he's liked what he's heard of Mikkola's game with the Rampage; he had eight points (two goals, six assists) in 26 games.

"He's been good," Berube said. "He is what he is, he's a solid defending defenseman, big, closes plays out, an aggressive player. He's got a real good stick at defending. 

"He's played well. I thought he had a good camp here and we like him a lot. He's improved his puck movement, which is good. That's important. I think he's got a good future. We'll see if we can get a look at him up here. We'll see how he goes."

- - -

The Blackhawks (12-14-6) have struggled at times mightily this season and are 0-2-1 their past three games, getting outscored 14-6 in the process. Chicago, which is also been hit with a rash of injuries, is 3-7-2 the past 12 games.

Hawks coach Jeremy Colliton knows the challenge against the Blues is daunting.

"They're a veteran team, and they know how to win," Colliton said. "They don't beat themselves. They're under control, clean with the puck. I think their defensemen are big, smooth and clean. It makes it difficult to forecheck them, makes it difficult to create offense because they're inside you and they're big, and obviously their forwards play a really heavy forechecking game.

"It'll be a challenge for is, but I think we can take a page out of their book and be patient, take what they give. We don't need to win the game on the first shift, have a good start, give ourselves the opportunity to win the game over 60 minutes."

- - -

Bozak will play in his 700th NHL game tonight. He has 415 points (152 goals, 263 assists). 

Thomas has a three-game point streak (one goal, two assists).

Blues goalie Jordan Binnington, who will get the start against Chicago's Corey Crawford, will face the Blackhawks for the first time.

- - -

The Blues' projected lineup:

Jaden Schwartz-Brayden Schenn-Jordan Kyrou

Alexander Steen-Ryan O'Reilly-David Perron 

Ivan Barbashev-Robert Thomas-Tyler Bozak

Mackenzie MacEachern-Jacob de la Rose-Oskar Sundqvist

Colton Parayko-Alex Pietrangelo

Jay Bouwmeester-Justin Faulk

Vince Dunn-Robert Bortuzzo

Jordan Binnington will start in goal; Jake Allen will be the backup.

Healthy scratches include Troy Brouwer, Zach Sanford and Niko Mikkola. Vladimir Tarasenko (shoulder), Sammy Blais (wrist) and Carl Gunnarsson (upper body) are out.

- - -

The Blackhawks' projected lineup:

Brandon Saad-Jonathan Toews-Dominik Kubalik

Alex DeBrincat-Dylan Strome-Patrick Kane

Zack Smith-David Kampf-Ryan Carpenter

Alex Nylander-Kirby Dach-Matthew Highmore

Olli Maatta-Brent Seabrook

Erik Gustafsson-Connor Murphy

Dennis Gilbert-Adam Boqvist 

Corey Crawford will start in goal; Robin Lehner will be the backup. 

Healthy scratches include Dylan Sikura and Slater Koekkoek. Duncan Keith (groin), Andrew Shaw (concussion protocol), Calvin de Haan (shoulder) and Drake Caggiula (concussion protocol) are out.