Recap 01-02-09: Blues vs Blackhawks

Welcome to the NHL Mr. Davis Payne. She is a cruel mistress willing to take in and chew up anyone. You had her going your way for about 25 minutes, the rest…well not so much.

I have to say that I saw a few things that I liked about last night’s game, that also bothered me.
- The defense was much more active in the neutral and offensive zones. Which sadly lead to many Hawks odd man rushes.
- Brad Boyes was tough(er) on the puck. He won at least 3 battles and had a few good body hits to make plays. Sadly, he couldn’t hit the net.
- The Blues got 3 men inside the blueline to apply forward pressure, but still didn’t really press the Hawks hard in the defensive zone.
- The team moved the puck better and seemed to move their bodies more. However, they still held on to the puck for too long missing movement lanes.

The Blues allowed Chicago to open the scoring, but quickly came back. The tit for tat scoring really reminded me of the Tampa Bay game on Dec. 18th. Decent effort, but couldn’t out do  the other team. Every time the Blues answered, Chicago had a second answer. The Blues couldn’t prevent Chicago from taking back over after the evened up the play.

I loved the early chippy feel. Both teams hit and it made for a nice pace. The only problem is the Blues just cannot run with Chicago’s horses. At some point you just can’t keep up. Very similar to playing San Jose, Pittsburgh, or the 2007-2009 Red Wings. I love that BJ Crombeen was willing to drop the gloves, but would rather it be Janssen. He just seems to have a way with the crowd, St. Louis just loves local boys. The Backes vs Toews bout…priceless. I do applaud Toews for manning up and taking on Backes, but man was he outmatched.

Mike Weaver had his usual game going (even if he was a Minus-3)...plus a rather big hit on Hawks Forward Patrick Sharp.

The Mike Weaver hit. Look all, it was hard, it was clean and Sharp had it coming. Have players not learned that when you are crossing the ice, you do not put your head down? I like what Tony Twist said on the FSMW post game (paraphrasing), if it was anyone bigger, he would be dead. I understand Twiter’s lighthearted comment, but its very true. Mike Weaver is not a big guy, but Sharp could have been seriously hurt if that was Polak, Backes, Jackman, Johnson, Tkachuk, Janssen, etc. As far as the Hawks response? I understand that you see your teammate down and you want payback. I’ve played team sports, I know the mentality. However, you HAVE to be restrained. YOu can go after Weaver and push him around. Then you lose control and end up with a 7 minute penalty kill? The Hawks would have lost that game to just about any other team. Especially after the Blues ended up with a two minute 5-on-3. A better team would have buried a couple goals and ended up with the lead after 7 minutes of forcing the other team to not play offense. Yes, you can argue the TJ Oshie “flipping” call was lame (and it was), but that shouldn’t deter the Blues from getting multiple legit scoring chances to turn momentum their way. The players let the team down on that one.

Can the Blues get some goaltending? I know that they let up some open chances. However, neither goal is capable to stealing a game solo. Conklin showed last night why he isn’t a starter and really hasn’t ever been one. He cannot steal you a game on his own. He mishandled pucks and didn’t cover his reads well. The Kopecky goal over his shoulder was the worst in my opinion. There is no reason to be that low that deep in your own net when the puck is 15 feet away from the net and no one is in front of you. Conklin was brought in to be releif for Mason and in the last five or so games he has started, he has looked the part of Hannu Toivonen circa 2007-2008.

I do not like saying this, because I really do like Carlo Colaiacovo…but he has been totally ineffective (save for the one goal) lately. He has really struggled holding the puck in the zone and getting back after he cannot handle it. It’s like he is struggling to skate. He looks slow out on the ice and is making bad decisions. His play in all three zones has just not been where it was last season. Last night looked more the part of Jeff Woywitka than what we say of Carlo in 08-09.

Boyes had a solid game nothing handling the puck. A sign of better games to come.

David Backes had a solid game. Not the greatest, but 2 Assists and a fight isn’t too bad. He had a few good plays in the offensive zone. Brad Boyes almost got off my list last night. He was playing hard and fighting for pucks, but then he just couldn’t hit the net. The Blues are the worst team I’ve seen in shooting to create rebounds. I really think that is their big problem in terms of scoring goals. For the most part Huet had no real issues controlling rebounds. McDonald was money as usual. Perron was feisty with the Jarhead Clan shaved head look. I love his game when he is fighting for it.

Is it fair to ask Erik Johnson who? Patrik Berglund who? Berlgund cosated through the game and I noteiced Brewer and Polak getting more involved offensively than EJ. I will say that Payne cannot transform both players overnight, no coach could. However, both players need to make a full commitment to making an impact in every game. If its not scoring, its doing all the other little things right. Its a very tired cliche in the world of hockey, but doing all the little things right will get your game going the right direction. I am not sure if I see the “right” play being made by both. Give them time folks its all part of the learning curve.

Its the beginning of a new era and I hope fans are patient. Payne is here (for now at least) to relate to the youth of this team from Boyes/Backes to Berglund and get their play to the next level. We are not the Penguins and we are not the Avalanche. This team is committed to the youth they have drafted and Payne is the next step in the process.

Injury Update:

TJ Oshie did not appear at the Fairview Heights, IL Rink Tour event today due to an injury sustained from a Brain Campbell hit in the 2nd Period last night. He did return to regular work in the 3rd Period, however he did not go out today with the rest of the Blues team.

Keith Tkachuk sustained a very nasty injury late in the game last night. He took an Oshie snap shot to the face. It literally was the 3rd Blues goal as it trickled in, but old Walt most likely lost several teeth and per some Twitter updates was heading to an oral surgeon. He also missed today’s Rink Tour events.

Next up for the Blues is San Jose on Wednesday the 6th. That gives Payne plenty of time to get some practices in and start shaping this team to his needs. The Blues are back on the road where they do have confidence. Let’s hope that road confidence carries over to three tough games in California and then back home.

Blues Player of the Game

David Backes

Backes contributed 2 Assists, 5 Hits, and a Fight with a Plus-2 Rating when the Blues gave up 6 Goals.