Season series: The St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers split two games last season. The Blues got a 31-save shutout from goalie Ryan Miller and shootout goals from T.J. Oshie and Kevin Shattenkirk in a 1-0 victory on April 1, 2014 in St. Louis. Flyers goalie Ray Emery made 28 saves.
Blues team scope: St. Louis was back on the ice Wednesday after taking two days off and will resume a five-game trip against the Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs. Newly acquired forward Olli Jokinen (Toronto Maple Leafs) and defenseman Robert Bortuzzo (Pittsburgh Penguins) were on the ice, but defenseman Zbynek Michalek (Arizona Coyotes) was not. Coach Ken Hitchcock said Michalek, who has a concussion, has not been cleared to skate but rode the bike. "It's good to have them here," Hitchcock said. "I'm sure the last 48 hours have been hard for them, but it's nice to see Bortuzzo and Jokinen at practice. … Both are real good team players." Goalie Brian Elliott will start. St. Louis trails the Nashville Predators by four points in the Central Division with two games in hand.
Flyers team scope: Defenseman Radko Gudas, acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday along with first- and third-round picks in the 2015 NHL Draft for defenseman Braydon Coburn, made his first comments Wednesday since arriving in Philadelphia. Gudas, who is out indefinitely with a right knee injury, gave no immediate indication to his availability. "It's still far," Gudas said. "As of the injury right now, we're trying to get better. There's a possibility [of playing this season], but after missing four or five months of not playing, getting thrown in playoff hockey … it would be the decision of coaches and staff what they think is best for the team." Gudas said his goal is to try to skate before the end of the regular season. The Flyers, who trail the Boston Bruins by five points for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference, are 3-0-2 in their past five home games.
After getting some time to rest and add new players, the St. Louis Blues will try to finish their five-game road stretch on a high note and aid their pursuit of the Central Division lead.
The Blues will first seek to get back in the win column Thursday night by sending the Philadelphia Flyers to their fourth loss in five games.
St. Louis got a chance to return home during a three-day break before heading to Philadelphia and just before Monday's trade deadline. The Blues didn't make a big splash like last season's acquisition of goaltender Ryan Miller but instead added to their depth.
They brought in veteran forward Olli Jokinen and defensemen Zbynek Michalek and Robert Bortuzzo. The latter two will try to make up for Kevin Shattenkirk's loss to abdominal surgery, but Michalek is currently recovering from a concussion.
"We weren't trying to reinvent the wheel today," general manager Doug Armstrong told the team's official website. "We were just trying to add some finishing touches."
Only Bortuzzo is expected to play in Philadelphia and will try to help his new club bounce back from its lone loss so far on this road stretch. The Blues (40-18-5) rallied from a three-goal deficit in the final 12 minutes of regulation Sunday against Vancouver but took a 6-5 shootout defeat.
The one point put St. Louis within four of a slumping Nashville, which faces the New York Islanders on Thursday, in the Central. Even with that defeat, the Blues are 9-1-1 in their last 11 road games.
Philadelphia, which is 1-2-1 in its last four games overall, nearly rallied for a fourth consecutive home win Tuesday.
The Flyers (27-25-12) erased a two-goal deficit in the first nine minutes of the third period against Calgary but Jiri Hudler sent them to a 3-2 overtime defeat. The result left them five points behind Boston for the Eastern Conference's final playoff spot with Florida in between.
"We should have been able to close it out," goaltender Steve Mason said.
The Blues are 4-1-1 in their last six against the Flyers heading into this season's first matchup. They're 1-1-2 in their last four visits to Philadelphia and 3-9-2 with one tie in their last 15 trips since the beginning of the 1991-92 season.
St. Louis took a 4-1 defeat in its most recent visit March 22. Mason, who will reportedly start this game, stopped 32 shots in that win and improved to 2-0-0 with a 0.73 goals-against average in his last three matchups.
Brian Elliott will likely start for St. Louis and face Philadelphia for the first time since a 4-2 road win Oct. 22, 2011. He's 4-2-0 with a 2.55 GAA in six career starts against the Flyers.
Philadelphia's Jakub Voracek has six goals and six assists in his last 11 games versus St. Louis, but has one goal and four assists in his past nine contests.
The teams meet again next Thursday in St. Louis.
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Shame I can't watch this game. Just saw this on JR's twetter:
[tweet][/tweet]
I imagine this is a big part of why Cole is gone - Lindbohm has been WAY more impressive in his few early starts than Cole ever was. Future looks good.
drwoland wrote:Shame I can't watch this game. Just saw this on JR's twetter:
[tweet][/tweet]
I imagine this is a big part of why Cole is gone - Lindbohm has been WAY more impressive in his few early starts than Cole ever was. Future looks good.
Present looking a little rough though unless something happens in the next 2 minutes.
Are we to take it that Shattenkirk actually IS the "Bobby Orr" of this team?
Last 10 games we're 5-5. Slump? Possibly. What it definently is, is poor hockey being played. D was really sound until the Flyers got ahead. Then our guys just fall apart. Same old story. I don't think this is something you can fix by trading players or moving people up and down, I think this is all about character and Hitch needs to be the guy with his foot on the pedal and right now I don't think he is. You can throw our overall record at me all you'd like, but I will remind those who try to that starting the season has rarely been our problem, it's finishing and following that momentum into the players deep is.
That all said, it's just one game. Alot can happen in the next one, see how it goes.
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Oaklandblue wrote:Are we to take it that Shattenkirk actually IS the "Bobby Orr" of this team?
Last 10 games we're 5-5. Slump? Possibly. What it definently is, is poor hockey being played. D was really sound until the Flyers got ahead. Then our guys just fall apart. Same old story. I don't think this is something you can fix by trading players or moving people up and down, I think this is all about character and Hitch needs to be the guy with his foot on the pedal and right now I don't think he is. You can throw our overall record at me all you'd like, but I will remind those who try to that starting the season has rarely been our problem, it's finishing and following that momentum into the players deep is.
That all said, it's just one game. Alot can happen in the next one, see how it goes.
I'm disappointed about tonight's loss too. If you're winning with 10 mins to go, you need to win. Period.
But, one thing to consider with the last 10 is that our "last 10 record" shifted from 6-3-1 to 5-4-1 tonight. Before tonight our last 10 games was a 106.6 point pace per 82 games. Now it's 90.2. 1 loss shifted that stat by 16.4 points per 82 games. My point is, winning tonight would make that stat show favorably for us. But, I don't think I'd feel all that different about the team at 6-3-1 over the last 10 than 5-4-1.
I don't want to say everything is roses after a game we lost that we should have won, but I think it's easy to get caught up in the present. We didn't suddenly forget how to play hockey. We're not suddenly a mediocre team because we lost tonight instead of won. I know the counter to my general viewpoint on the team is that they need to prove it in the playoffs. And while that's valid, tonight didn't move that needle one way or another at all.
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Oaklandblue wrote:Are we to take it that Shattenkirk actually IS the "Bobby Orr" of this team?
Last 10 games we're 5-5. Slump? Possibly. What it definently is, is poor hockey being played. D was really sound until the Flyers got ahead. Then our guys just fall apart. Same old story. I don't think this is something you can fix by trading players or moving people up and down, I think this is all about character and Hitch needs to be the guy with his foot on the pedal and right now I don't think he is. You can throw our overall record at me all you'd like, but I will remind those who try to that starting the season has rarely been our problem, it's finishing and following that momentum into the players deep is.
That all said, it's just one game. Alot can happen in the next one, see how it goes.
I'm disappointed about tonight's loss too. If you're winning with 10 mins to go, you need to win. Period.
But, one thing to consider with the last 10 is that our "last 10 record" shifted from 6-3-1 to 5-4-1 tonight. Before tonight our last 10 games was a 106.6 point pace per 82 games. Now it's 90.2. 1 loss shifted that stat by 16.4 points per 82 games. My point is, winning tonight would make that stat show favorably for us. But, I don't think I'd feel all that different about the team at 6-3-1 over the last 10 than 5-4-1.
I don't want to say everything is roses after a game we lost that we should have won, but I think it's easy to get caught up in the present. We didn't suddenly forget how to play hockey. We're not suddenly a mediocre team because we lost tonight instead of won. I know the counter to my general viewpoint on the team is that they need to prove it in the playoffs. And while that's valid, tonight didn't move that needle one way or another at all.
Definently not. Playoffs are a seperate season all on it's own, so I'm with you on that. My main gripe with tonight's game is that you don't give up when the other team gets ahead because that's what I honestly saw out there while watching the game. I'd love to see them attack diversity instead of acts of desperation. When we do that, even at the end of a game where we start a comeback, it says alot of the team's resolve and that resolve is what we need to make a deep run in the playoffs. Skill, we got bucketloads of that. I wish I knew what the magic switch is that gets these guys on the go and what totally turns them off because if I did, I'd be on the phone to Army right this minute. In the end, it's just a game, nothing more, nothing less, and I'm just making an observation. Like everyone else here, I want to see a Cup in the STL. So.
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This one's on the offense-two periods against a totally listless team and only one goal. Basically asked them to come back.
Blues have scored 5 goals in Elliott's last 4 road starts. That's f'in pathetic-the kind of stuff that will piss off a goalie. Might be some insight into Ells' psyche lately.
