True Believers Roll Call

[Brian39]

There's not really a team that scares me for the Blues to play, I think the only opponents that come close are Tampa but even so we shut them out recently and showed we can play with them, and obviously if we meet them in the playoffs things have gone extremely well to that point.

Nothing about playing Tampa scares me. We could lose 4 straight games 8-0 and I would be beyond pleased with the season. I'm over 30 years old and have never seen the Blues play in the Final. I'd wager decent money that 95% of this board has never witnessed a Stanley Cup Final game involving the Blues. I'll obsessively break down teams in the West and analyze potential roads to the Final, but after that it is house money. Being in the building for a Blues Cup win is #1 my bucket list of things that are out of my control. Being in the building for any Cup Final game involving the Blues is #2.

No one in the West truly scares me. We're certainly not favorites against every team, but I think beating any of them is realistic.

 

[Doohickie]

I got banned from the ROR thread (rightly so I suppose) so I guess the only way to acknowledge this is to pay tribute to the Blues true believers:

I was wrong. I have no idea what Sabres brass was thinking when they dealt O'Reilly. Maybe some day the Baby Giraffe and the draft pick will turn into good players, but right now the Sabres are a worse team for the lack of O'Reilly and the Blues are better for having him.

So good on you true believers for sticking with your team. Like Brian39 said, they're not favoriates against any team, but at least they've got a shot, which is more than can be said for the Sabres.

 

[ItsOnlytheRiver]

2 losses in a row and we should probably take roll call again judging by the posts I see on this board.

 

[Default]

Seasons over. Go next.

 

[Doohickie]

Seasons over. Go next.

That's hilarious. They lost two games to teams clawing to get into the playoffs. It's that time of year.

 

[Meatball]

2 losses in a row and we should probably take roll call again judging by the posts I see on this board.

*takes a quick peak at the standings*

 

[Default]

That's hilarious. They lost two games to teams clawing to get into the playoffs. It's that time of year.

I just like to spread optimism to the boys.

 

[Stealth JD]

2 losses in a row and we should probably take roll call again judging by the posts I see on this board.

Even if they go back to .500 the rest of the way, they're in a really good spot, considering a bunch of teams behind them would still need to get +5 more wins to push them out of a playoff spot. I think they'll regroup and get things cleaned up...but if the power-play isn't clicking they could be in trouble until Perron & Schenn come back. ROR (pointless in 5) and Tarasenko (2 assists in past 5 games) are getting shut down, and while the defense is doing it's part to generate offense, the secondary scoring has dried-up. In winning only two of six since the 11-game streak, they've only scored 9 goals, total (one an ENG), and the forwards have been stifled. If the 2nd-4th lines could start chipping in, it would take a lot of pressure off of everyone else. But they'll still waltz into the playoffs barring more injuries or Binnington turning back into a pumpkin.

 

[ItsOnlytheRiver]

Even if they go back to .500 the rest of the way, they're in a really good spot, considering a bunch of teams behind them would still need to get +5 more wins to push them out of a playoff spot. I think they'll regroup and get things cleaned up...but if the power-play isn't clicking they could be in trouble until Perron & Schenn come back. ROR (pointless in 5) and Tarasenko (2 assists in past 5 games) are getting shut down, and while the defense is doing it's part to generate offense, the secondary scoring has dried-up. In winning only two of six since the 11-game streak, they've only scored 9 goals, total (one an ENG), and the forwards have been stifled. If the 2nd-4th lines could start chipping in, it would take a lot of pressure off of everyone else. But they'll still waltz into the playoffs barring more injuries or Binnington turning back into a pumpkin.

I agree. I’ve been banging the “PP needs to improve” drum for a while. They’re gonna have problems scoring consistently until they get Schenn and Perron back but they are still gonna score in some games. And their defense is still strong, just got a couple down goalie performances.

They’ll probably come out and win the next game and we’ll start debating which date we pass Winnipeg again.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

2 losses in a row and we should probably take roll call again judging by the posts I see on this board.

The discussion this past week has caused an injury from all my eye-rolling.

I'm also ramping up for me week-long Blues road trip. First stop: San Jose on Saturday. I'll try to give a report including some photos. Anyone know if there is a chance to catch road practices or find out more info? Where would you look? I know the Ottawa game, the Senators have an open practice that morning I plan to attend.

 

[ItsOnlytheRiver]

The discussion this past week has caused an injury from all my eye-rolling.

I'm also ramping up for me week-long Blues road trip. First stop: San Jose on Saturday. I'll try to give a report including some photos. Anyone know if there is a chance to catch road practices or find out more info? Where would you look? I know the Ottawa game, the Senators have an open practice that morning I plan to attend.

I did the West Coast swing last year. Enjoy. Sorry, can’t help about practices. I’d recommend enjoying those cities a little bit instead.

 

[GoldenSeal]

I believe in the Note. We will find a way.

 

[Falco Lombardi]

I still think we end up at least second in the division.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

I still think we end up at least second in the division.

The next two are games they should win. Not easy, but the Blues are the better team. They’ve had a bit of a recharge and hopefully at least getting Schenn back. If we see a team that can’t play their style from February again the next 2 games I’ll start to think they’re just a wildcard. I still think they’ll go on one more roll enough to threaten Nashville, but Winnipeg is too far ahead probably.

 

[HighNote]

The next two are games they should win. Not easy, but the Blues are the better team. They’ve had a bit of a recharge and hopefully at least getting Schenn back. If we see a team that can’t play their style from February again the next 2 games I’ll start to think they’re just a wildcard. I still think they’ll go on one more roll enough to threaten Nashville, but Winnipeg is too far ahead probably.

11 of Winnipeg's remaining 16 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 5 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They could also play a desperate Hawks team on April 1st if they're still in the hunt. LA and Anaheim are truly the only teams they still need to play that are well out of a playoff spot.

4 of the Blues' remaining 17 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 13 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They play the Hawks right after Winnipeg does, on the 3rd, and Philadelphia the day after who might still be in the hunt (it's unlikely though, as they are 7 points out with only a game in hand). The Blues play Anaheim, LA, Ottawa, Buffalo, Edmonton, Detroit, NYR, New Jersey, and Vancouver for the other 9.

We're getting Schenn back soon, if not tonight, as well as Perron. We have a game in hand as well. I'd say catching Winnipeg is still in the cards, assuming we can get back to anything close to our level of play in February and beat down on the easy competition over the next month. In the end it's in Winnipeg's hands, but you can't deny that that is likely the toughest remaining schedule of any team in the league.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

11 of Winnipeg's remaining 16 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 5 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They could also play a desperate Hawks team on April 1st if they're still in the hunt. LA and Anaheim are truly the only teams they still need to play that are well out of a playoff spot.

4 of the Blues' remaining 17 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 13 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They play the Hawks right after Winnipeg does, on the 3rd, and Philadelphia the day after who might still be in the hunt (it's unlikely though, as they are 7 points out with only a game in hand). The Blues play Anaheim, LA, Ottawa, Buffalo, Edmonton, Detroit, NYR, New Jersey, and Vancouver.

We're getting Schenn back soon, if not tonight, as well as Perron. We have a game in hand as well. I'd say catching Winnipeg is still in the cards, assuming we can get back to anything close to our level of play in February and beat down on the easy competition over the next month.

I won't argue with that!

 

[MissouriMook]

11 of Winnipeg's remaining 16 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 5 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They could also play a desperate Hawks team on April 1st if they're still in the hunt. LA and Anaheim are truly the only teams they still need to play that are well out of a playoff spot.

4 of the Blues' remaining 17 games are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Of those other 13 games, 2 are against teams who are 3 or less points out of a spot at the moment. They play the Hawks right after Winnipeg does, on the 3rd, and Philadelphia the day after who might still be in the hunt (it's unlikely though, as they are 7 points out with only a game in hand). The Blues play Anaheim, LA, Ottawa, Buffalo, Edmonton, Detroit, NYR, New Jersey, and Vancouver for the other 9.

We're getting Schenn back soon, if not tonight, as well as Perron. We have a game in hand as well. I'd say catching Winnipeg is still in the cards, assuming we can get back to anything close to our level of play in February and beat down on the easy competition over the next month. In the end it's in Winnipeg's hands, but you can't deny that that is likely the toughest remaining schedule of any team in the league.

If Winnipeg goes 8-7-1 in their final 16 games with their tough schedule, they'll finish with 99 points. If the Blues go 12-4-1 in their final 17 games with their easier schedule, they'll finish with the same 99 points. The Blues currently trail the ROW tie-breaker by 4 ROWs, so we would need the 'Peg to have one more S/O win than we did over that final stretch, or we'd have to go 12-3-2 or 13-4 to get to 100 points. We would lose to WPG on the second tie breaker with our head-to-head matchup this season.

By contrast, Nashville's remaining schedule isn't too soft either, and they would need to go 8-5-0 or 7-3-2 in their last 13 to get to 99 points. They are only 2 ROWs ahead of us despite having 4 games in hand, and we would win the head-to-head tie breaker, so the Blues probably win any tie breaker with the Prehistoric Kitties. If the Blues get back to playing the kind of hockey they were in February, they could make life difficult for either or both of these teams to hang on to home ice advantage in Round 1.

As far as just making the playoffs, even if we finish 9-7-1 in our last 17 we end up with 93 points. The current 9th place team, Colorado, would have to finish 11-3-1 in their last 15 to tie us and potentially knock us out of a wild card spot. They are currently 5 ROWs behind us, so they would likely have to pass us, which would mean 12-3-0 or 11-2-2 in their last 15, both a pretty tall order. If we can't take 19 points in these last 17 games, we probably don't deserve to make the playoffs anyway.

 

[JR1]

Every team on this west coast trip will have had more rest than us and have been at home for a while. On any given night ...........
The Ducks and Kings SHOULD be wins for us but they will both be rested and relaxed at home. Hopefully the Blues have regrouped a little bit.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Every team on this west coast trip will have had more rest than us and have been at home for a while. On any given night ...........
The Ducks and Kings SHOULD be wins for us but they will both be rested and relaxed at home. Hopefully the Blues have regrouped a little bit.

Anaheim played yesterday in Arizona?

 

[Brockon]

Anaheim played yesterday in Arizona?

Shhhhh. Logic has no place here.

 

[AjaxManifesto]

Still see November bad habits coming out. Need to get it together in these last games.

 

[fishsandwichpatrol]

Me now after posting in this topic months ago

 

[Brockon]

I'm hoping we see a Andrew Hammond run from Jordan Binnington. Hammond won, what, 20 of 24 games?

That's the time of magic and confidence that could get this team to the playoffs.

Close, but not quite. Hammond went 20-1-2 with 1.79 GAA and a 0.941 save percentage. Then he lost the crease to Anderson after dropping the first 2 games to Montreal in the playoffs.

That would be phenomenal if Binnington could pull those kinds of numbers off for even 12 games. 12 games like that would completely transform how this squad looks on the ice.

It would also give all of players contemplating their future another reason to stay. Because, Schenn has got to be wondering about the team's future and potential as a contender at this stage big time.

Well, the stretch isn't quite done yet, but this debut by Binnington has got to be nearly historical.

AH 20-1-2, 1.79 GAA, 94.1 SV%, 3 SHO
JB 18-4-1, 1.77 GAA, 93.1 SV%, 5 SHO

This after Binny's 13-1-1 tear to start his NHL career with 1.60 GAA and 93.7 SV%...

I think we can call this a success, if Binns can produce numbers like this for a large portion of his starts to avoid the second half of the Andrew Hammond story.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Rereading this thread was entertaining. I think the Blues are going to mathematically clinch their playoff spot before this week is over. Pretty amazing.

 

[WeWentBlues]

Rereading this thread was entertaining. I think the Blues are going to mathematically clinch their playoff spot before this week is over. Pretty amazing.

Can we get lists of everyone who was a buyer and everyone who was a seller?