THE SERIES SO FAR
Jan. 26: Blues 5, Golden Knights 4 (SO)
A back-and-forth game featured an excessive amount of penalties by both teams, but the Blues emerged with a 5-4 win thanks to shootout goals from David Perron and Brayden Schenn. Perron also scored twice in regulation, and Jordan Kyrou turned heads with a dazzling goal that former Blue Alex pietrangelo frustrated. Max Pacioretty netted a hat trick for Vegas, but Jordan Binnington made 42 saves to help the Blues to a win in the first game of the series.
March 12: Golden Knights 5, Blues 4 (OT)
Vladimir Tarasenko scored his first goal of the season in his third game back from shoulder surgery, helping the Blues overcome a 2-0 first period deficit to earn a point in an eventual overtime loss against the Golden Knights. Zach Sanford registered a goal and an assist, and Jordan Binnington made 35 saves. The Blues lost their third straight game in overtime but have still managed to collect points in seven consecutive games (4-0-3).
March 13: Golden Knights 5, Blues 1
Mark Stone scored twice in the third period, Max Pacioretty had a goal and two assists and Marc-Andre Fleury made 34 saves in a 5-1 win against the Blues.
March 22: Golden Knights 5, Blues 1
In a repeat of the last meeting between the teams, Mark Stone again came up with two goals in a four-goal third period for the Golden Knights. Vince Dunn scored the lone goal for the Blues while Jordan Binnington made 30 saves.
April 5: Golden Knights 6, Blues 1
Alec Martinez scored two goals and the Vegas Golden Knights scored four times in the second period en route to a 6-1 win against the Blues at Enterprise Center. Tyler Bozak scored the Blues' only goal in the game.
The underachieving Blues will host the Vegas Golden Knights again on Thursday night, hoping to get things turned around after a 6-1 pummeling Tuesday in the first of the two-game set.
Ville Husso was pulled early after allowing 5 goals on 19 shots, and the Blues never made it a game.
Personnel, Goaltending Problems Sinking Blues
St. Louis come in losers of seven straight, dropping from a playoff spot all the way to sixth in the West division in the process. The Blues sit five points back of Arizona for the final spot, with one game in hand. The playoffs are still within reach for 2018-19 Stanley Cup champions, but they will certainly have to raise their level of play to get there.
The Blues have shown some very legitimate regression this year, skating to an expected goals percentage of 47.34. The Blues lost captain Alex Pietrangelo to the Golden Knights last summer, Vladimir Tarasenko has played just 14 games and scored only two goals after a late start to the season recovering from yet another surgery, and Colton Parayko has played just 17 games, finally making his return from an upper body injury on Tuesday.
But more impactful than any of these personnel losses, Jordan Binnington and Husso have combined to be one of the worst goaltending tandems in the league. Binnington has been a shell of his cup winning self, with a .904% save percentage and a goals saved above expected rating of -5. Ville Husso has not taken the opportunity to steal the starting role, owning an .883% save percentage and a goals saved above expected rating of -11.3.
If the Blues are going to overcome the five-point deficit they now are up against for the final playoff spot, they will certainly need to put a halt to this seven-game losing streak tomorrow night.
Vegas Too Deep For Most Teams
The Golden Knights are a perfect fit to represent Sin City, playing a very high tempo style involving lots of chances both ways. Vegas sit fifth in xGF/60 at 2.59, and 23rd in xGA/60 at 2.42. The style certainly works for them, as they own a 25-10-2 record overall and sit second just to the utterly dominant Avalanche.
Vegas own one of the best goaltending tandems in the league between Marc Andre-Fleury and Robin Lehner. Fleury has received more starts this year due to Lehner’s injury, and has certainly taken advantage with a .924 save percentage and ranking second in goals saved above expected at 12.2. Robin Lehner has found his form as well since his return, including dominating the Blues in Tuesday’s win.
Mark Stone is the leader of a very deep offense, and should finish inside the top 10 for Hart trophy voting. Max Pacioretty has been the main benefactor of Stone’s incredible passing, and has continued to his career resurgence. Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith is now technically the No. 2 line, but is still an elite one. Alex Tuch might be one of the most underrated players in the game, and he’s certainly someone I would recommend paying attention to going forward.
Vegas are currently the third cup favourites at most books, and rightfully so as the team has been dominant again.
Naturally, the best preview out there is from a gambling site...
