GDT: Blues @ Preds

[RR10*]

The SOB line especially Backes and Oshie looked like complete crap tonight imo, Backes or Oshie couldn't receive a pass or keep the puck on their stick to save their souls tonight. Sorry I just don't agree about Stastny, he's the veteren NHL player and proven point producer here between the 2 not Lehtera, it should be on the 7 million dollar man to get the secondary scoring going in my opinion.

Agree. We are fortunate to have him for 2,75 and now he has to take a step back because the 7 mill guy decided to be invisible. Sure..

 

[LGB51]

It's like the rest of our forward group have forgotten how to play offense, we're 26 games into the season now guys. The slow starting Backes & Oshie should have already picked up their scoring/point production by now. I think it's time we start to seriously consider these two after having fantastic (and in Oshie's case career year) seasons last year are just having a off or down year. With a few good games sprinkled in for both here and there, but for the most part a step back year after two real good seasons last year.

 

[Vladys Gumption]

There's no question that this team has a lot of key players that are under performing. That needs to change.

 

[LGB51]

Lehtera hasn't been bad recently. He had a weak game tonight but that's his first bad game with the Blues. If you are going to say that he has been bad lately you can aswell say that to Tarasenko and Schwartz.

Hey how about that, this is the very first time I have ever read a post of yours and completely agreed with it carry on my wayward son.

 

[sbet1998]

Agree. We are fortunate to have him for 2,75 and now he has to take a step back because the 7 mill guy decided to be invisible. Sure..

Do you want Stastny to succeed? You seem content to blast him and just sit back and hope one line will carry the Blues. Fun to watch, but this offense is second tier right now with all that offense from the STL line.

What were trying to figure out is whether Stastny could make that line look better while giving continuity to the SOB line. Maybe Lehtera's talent could provide the 3rd line with something. Apparently they only need two players to stay together to win the Cup.

Im just trying to make the best of the choatic line combos that arent doing enough as a whole.

 

[Note Worthy]

Do you want Stastny to succeed? You seem content to blast him and just sit back and hope one line will carry the Blues. Fun to watch, but this offense is second tier right now with all that offense from the STL line.

What were trying to figure out is whether Stastny could make that line look better while giving continuity to the SOB line. Maybe Lehtera's talent could provide the 3rd line with something. Apparently they only need two players to stay together to win the Cup.

Im just trying to make the best of the choatic line combos that arent doing enough as a whole.

I definitely see the logic here. I would rather roll three really good lines than one great line and two under performing ones because that one great line can't carry the team every single game all season long.

Now, some of this isn't just going to be fixed by changing lines. Certain players need to perform better.

 

[Bad Goalie]

They're playing well and there is a freshness to that team with the changes plus they are all hot and heavy over Forsberg right now.

A couple stupid mistakes cost the Blues this one. Marty looked pretty good but the Blues could have used a big save. Nashville is good, but not dominant. Riding a hot streak, IMO.

Blues will eventually have other players step up. Stastny, Oshie, Steen will have their time at some point. Dont care when, just need to get them there and they are on track for that. Stastny took a step forward tonight.

Aspects of Marty's game are great to watch even at his age. His compete level is awesome and his IQ is off the charts. Too bad the Blues got him this late in his career.

"Aspects of Marty's game are great to watch even at his age. His compete level is awesome and his IQ is off the charts. Too bad the Blues got him this late in his career."

Don't give up so quickly. You must remember he has had less than a week of actual NHL level practice. He's been skating on his own and getting shots from whomever including Gomez. What you saw was an off the cuff demonstration and it wasn't bad. Get him to game shape in a couple of weeks. It will take at least that long to find out what he really has left in the tank. I think the hockey world will still be impressed at what's there.

The team in general is on a down lull. It happens to all teams a few times a season. The good ones overcome and put it back together. Best current example is the Hawks. Look at how their record has been established this season. They have already had a real bad streak. Now they are hot. What every team strives for is a consistent effort every night. It's not that easy to accomplish. The Blues are too talented to all of a sudden be consistently out of sorts. They'll be back.

 

[sbet1998]

I definitely see the logic here. I would rather roll three really good lines than one great line and two under performing ones because that one great line can't carry the team every single game all season long.

Now, some of this isn't just going to be fixed by changing lines. Certain players need to perform better.

Agreed.

Its tough to figure out how to put these guys together to create more offense. Im sure the Blues management is thinking about this as well.

Tarasenko is scoring no matter who is on the ice with him lately. Lehtera is starting to show some rookie mistakes. The adrenaline is wearing.

 

[RR10*]

Watching San Jose - Boston and man what a game! Both teams have another gear compared to the Blues. Watching this game makes me pretty sure the Sharks would destroy the Blues in the playoffs. I wish we could play some creative hockey for once instead of trying to play along the boards for 60 mins.

 

[LGB51]

*edit* pulled from Twitter lmao.

 

[Rise from the Ashes]

Schwartz - Lehtera - Tarasenko
Steen - Stastny - Fabbri
Sobotka - Backes - Oshie
Jaskin - Lapierre - Reaves

The Blues thought they did the right thing..

This looks great, but unsure Fabbri should be rushed.

I'd do:

STL

Steen-Backes-Oshie

Berglund-Stastny-Jaskin

Just keep Stastny on a line where he can focus on playing solid two-way hockey and leave the other two lines who have history of great chemistry. Sobotka would be great.

 

[RR10*]

*edit* pulled from Twitter lmao.

The PP sucked as much back then. The only difference is that they faced worse teams (Coyotes, Sabres for ex) and got fortunate with bounces. The PP hasn't looked good whole season.

 

[RR10*]

This looks great, but unsure Fabbri should be rushed.

I'd do:

STL

Steen-Backes-Oshie

Berglund-Stastny-Jaskin

Just keep Stastny on a line where he can focus on playing solid two-way hockey and leave the other two lines who have history of great chemistry. Sobotka would be great.

The way Fabbri dominated in preseason games tells me he is more than ready. If he could stay away from injuries he would've been a key player on this team already. He outplayed every forward on the Blues team and it didn't look to be a coincidence. And we know that Sobotka is a huge improvement on Berglund in every single way.

 

[sbet1998]

This looks great, but unsure Fabbri should be rushed.

I'd do:

STL

Steen-Backes-Oshie

Berglund-Stastny-Jaskin

Just keep Stastny on a line where he can focus on playing solid two-way hockey and leave the other two lines who have history of great chemistry. Sobotka would be great.

Seems great, but its not happening. With the depth the Blues have I dont think its agreeable.

 

[RR10*]

Am I the only one that doesn't really like the white road sweaters? I like the home sweater but the white one isn't doing it for me. It's missing something.

 

[Thallis]

the lesser known Rule 35. If something exists, people will complain about it

Forgive me for being reeeaaally petty here, but there is a rule 35, and that's not it.

As far as the game is concerned, we shouldn't be. I guarantee nobody will think these two game matter in May. We need a few thing to happen, but most are internal. I'm for giving Jaskin an extended look at this point. Lindstrom has been too weak on the puck to really succeed. There must be an issue with Paajarvi that Hitch won't give him more than a game every now and then. I thoroughly believe that Army is working on finding someone for the third line RW but until then we need to fill it with an internal option.

Oshie, Berglund, Stastny, they'll figure it out. There is no reason to believe they won't based on their careers to this point. Lehtera has fallen off over the past few weeks. I wouldn't start the game with Stastny in between Tarasenko and Schwartz but I'd have it in to shuffle them between periods if that line struggles.

Defense will be more or less fixed with Bouw's return. Pietro has gotten a lot of heat in the last weeks, but he's not playing as bad as some would have you believe. He's taking risks with the puck when we're down and leading the rush, which inevitably leads to chances against. It's a reality of being down in a game and something a star defenseman has to do. The problem is he's rarely getting support when this happens and it's not converting into goals. It doesn't mean the decision is wrong, just that it's not converting. The breakaway is a perfect example of this, as well as the Kane goal last night.

 

[rumrokh]

Another loss. We can see how much Boumeester brings stability and a better quality defence to The Blues. I hope he returns soon.

I'm feeling better about Brodeur than I did before seeing him play this season. I liked the way Lindbohm looked despite his having made a couple bad mistakes and a few poor decisions. Not happy about Berglund's big gaff not covering when The Blues lost possession when both Butler and Pietrangelo were trapped deep in the offensive zone.

Wow, I couldn't disagree more. That was a wretched pinch by Butler with Pietro already in deep. Butler looked good the first couple games he was up, but he, Jackman, and Cole have been abysmal lately. Berglund is not having a good season and I probably won't shed a tear when he's eventually dealt, but that goal isn't remotely on him.

 

[RR10*]

Playoff chances

This is how I rate our playoff chances right now. Keep in mind that it can change during the season with personnel changes etc.

Chicago - No way we can match them in a playoff series without a major shakeup involving elite talent like Giroux.

Los Angeles - They'll beat us. They are rock solid and their defense is superior to ours. By watching their games you can clearly see that they have another (playoff) gear.

Anaheim - They'll beat us. They are better build for the playoffs. More consistent and their elite guys outperform ours.

San Jose - They'll beat us. They have another gear that I don't think the Blues have an answer to. Watch the replay of their game against the Boston tonight and you'll see what I mean.

Nashville - I'd say 50/50. By watching the games between the teams I'm not sure we can beat them in a playoff series.

Minnesota - Same as Nashville. It can go either way.

We'd beat the rest. This is my opinion and you dont have to agree with it.

 

[Balloon]

This is how I rate our playoff chances right now. Keep in mind that it can change during the season with personnel changes etc.

Chicago - No way we can match them in a playoff series without a major shakeup involving elite talent like Giroux.

Los Angeles - They'll beat us. They are rock solid and their defense is superior to ours. By watching their games you can clearly see that they have another (playoff) gear.

Anaheim - They'll beat us. They are better build for the playoffs. More consistent and their elite guys outperform ours.

San Jose - They'll beat us. They have another gear that I don't think the Blues have an answer to. Watch the replay of their game against the Boston tonight and you'll see what I mean.

Nashville - I'd say 50/50. By watching the games between the teams I'm not sure we can beat them in a playoff series.

Minnesota - Same as Nashville. It can go either way.

We'd beat the rest. This is my opinion and you dont have to agree with it.

Every time we lose you act like it's the end of the world. Teams lose whether they're good or bad. It happens.

The Chicago series is tied, we're only down by 1 against Nashville (and all of the games were 1-goal games IIRC), the L.A. game went to a shoot out, so it could have gone either way. The series with Anaheim is 1-1, and we shut them out in our win even though we were injured. And you're giving SJ way too much credit for one game against a struggling Boston.

 

[Robb_K]

Wow, I couldn't disagree more. That was a wretched pinch by Butler with Pietro already in deep. Butler looked good the first couple games he was up, but he, Jackman, and Cole have been abysmal lately. Berglund is not having a good season and I probably won't shed a tear when he's eventually dealt, but that goal isn't remotely on him.

I agree that that was a bad mistake by Butler, and that the goal wasn't entirely on Berglund. There were several mistakes by different Blues players on that sequence. And I agree that Butler, and Jackman have been playing poorly lately. Butler did improve some for a few games, but he's definitely a liability. Cole has been improving, but still makes some poor decisions and mistakes that cause goals. Lindbohm, too has looked great on some plays, good on others, an has also made several costly mistakes. But, overall, I like the way he's progressing.

 

[Frenzy31]

I agree that that was a bad mistake by Butler, and that the goal wasn't entirely on Berglund. There were several mistakes by different Blues players on that sequence. And I agree that Butler, and Jackman have been playing poorly lately. Butler did improve some for a few games, but he's definitely a liability. Cole has been improving, but still makes some poor decisions and mistakes that cause goals. Lindbohm, too has looked great on some plays, good on others, an has also made several costly mistakes. But, overall, I like the way he's progressing.

That is the issue. Jackman shouldn't be on the top pairing. He is has looked good with Cole, but not against teams top lines. Cole is stuck with Butler - and that isn't a good pairing. W/ Jax - cole could jump into the play, with Butler, he can't even though he has been and that is biting us. Butler's lack of defensive on-ice awareness is hurting that pairing.

We really need Oshie, Steen and Backes to play together on the regular basis to get the chemistry going. They will need a couple of games to get into a flow.

For all of the Lehtera love, he is a defensive liability out there. Team have keyed on that line and trying to make that line play in the dzone. I am not for changing it up, but...

 

[BlueDream]

This is how I rate our playoff chances right now. Keep in mind that it can change during the season with personnel changes etc.

Chicago - No way we can match them in a playoff series without a major shakeup involving elite talent like Giroux.

Los Angeles - They'll beat us. They are rock solid and their defense is superior to ours. By watching their games you can clearly see that they have another (playoff) gear.

Anaheim - They'll beat us. They are better build for the playoffs. More consistent and their elite guys outperform ours.

San Jose - They'll beat us. They have another gear that I don't think the Blues have an answer to. Watch the replay of their game against the Boston tonight and you'll see what I mean.

Nashville - I'd say 50/50. By watching the games between the teams I'm not sure we can beat them in a playoff series.

Minnesota - Same as Nashville. It can go either way.

We'd beat the rest. This is my opinion and you dont have to agree with it.

Really? The Sharks have another gear? Yeah their playoff history, especially blowing a 3-0 lead last year, is so good...

Give me a break. The Sharks aren't even in the playoffs right now. They aren't good.

Minnesota also can't beat us. But I love the overreaction, keep it up.

 

[WalterSobchak]

The way Fabbri dominated in preseason games tells me he is more than ready. If he could stay away from injuries he would've been a key player on this team already. He outplayed every forward on the Blues team and it didn't look to be a coincidence. And we know that Sobotka is a huge improvement on Berglund in every single way.

pre-season is meaningless. Adam Cracknell dominated the pre-season a few years ago.

 

[542365]

No chance Minnesota would beat us in a playoff series unless they made a major move(or if we did some of the silly things that have been suggested in the trade thread). They simply aren't a good team.

San Jose is very meh to me, but with the way our team has played in Cali the past couple seasons I wouldn't say it's impossible. I think we would beat them, but I don't think it would be easy.

Anaheim has their ups and downs. Sometimes they look unbeatable, and sometimes they look very average. I would not like the Blues chances in a playoff series if they started tomorrow(thankfully they don't).

Agree about 50/50 against Nashville. Home ice would be very important.

LA looks mediocre right now, but they always do in December. Until they prove otherwise, they're the best team in the league.

Chicago is Chicago. We simply can't beat them in their barn so I don't have high hopes for a series.

Montreal is the only team in the East that would beat us in a series. They're great.

Thankfully there is a long time before the playoffs. We've played a couple great games where we look like a powerhouse, but we've played our fair share of stinkers. If we could sustain our best for four series, I like our chances against anyone except LA. We can be much better and I have confidence we will be soon.

 

[Blues88]

No chance Minnesota would beat us in a playoff series unless they made a major move(or if we did some of the silly things that have been suggested in the trade thread). They simply aren't a good team.

San Jose is very meh to me, but with the way our team has played in Cali the past couple seasons I wouldn't say it's impossible. I think we would beat them, but I don't think it would be easy.

Anaheim has their ups and downs. Sometimes they look unbeatable, and sometimes they look very average. I would not like the Blues chances in a playoff series if they started tomorrow(thankfully they don't).

Agree about 50/50 against Nashville. Home ice would be very important.

LA looks mediocre right now, but they always do in December. Until they prove otherwise, they're the best team in the league.

Chicago is Chicago. We simply can't beat them in their barn so I don't have high hopes for a series.

Montreal is the only team in the East that would beat us in a series. They're great.

Thankfully there is a long time before the playoffs. We've played a couple great games where we look like a powerhouse, but we've played our fair share of stinkers. If we could sustain our best for four series, I like our chances against anyone except LA. We can be much better and I have confidence we will be soon.

Curious....You'd feel confident against Boston and Tampa?

Blues could beat the Ducks and maybe the Kings. Chicago is a different story. It doesn't seem to matter when we play them. There are no trends. We can frustrate them but we don't match up well. I both love and hate the thought that they'll be a likely playoff opponent. Need to shed that monkey....