Gameday 1-22-11: Blues vs. Blue Jackets

The St. Louis Blues (22-17-7, 51 Points) wrap up their week long three game homestand against another Central Division rival, the Columbus Blue Jackets (22-20-5, 49 Points). This is a pivotal contest for the Note. They sit just two points ahead of Columbus who occupies 13th place who is just one point ahead of 14th place Calgary. A win could move them within one point of 8th, while a loss can set them back five points should Colorado defeat Boston.

The Blues will be without the services of defenseman Barret Jackman. He was listed as day to day following the loss to Detroit and did not practice Friday. Head Coach Davis Payne did said Friday that Jackman status was “Questionable”. Tyson Strachan will fill in for #5.

Barret’s charitable cause, Barret’s Buddies, is holding the third annual Barkin’ For the Blues night in conjunction with David Backes‘ group, David’s Dogs. Proceeds benefit Stray Rescue of St. Louis and the St. Charles Humane Society. Stop by and “say hi to Kelly for me”. David’s wife Kelly has her own group benefiting from a Blues partnership, Kelly’s Cats.

Defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo remains out of the lineup after taking a puck to the face in consecutive games. Poor guy can’t catch a break with injuries this season. No additional updates on Andy McDonald or David Perron. What we found out Thursday from Army is status quo.

Brad Boyes earned a promotion to the top line Thursday. He and Matt D’Agostini have flipped positions. Here is what the lineup should look like for the Blues.

Alex Steen – David Backes – Brad Boyes
Vladimir Sobotka – Patrik Berglund – TJ Oshie
Brad Winchester – Jay McClement – Matt D’Agostini
BJ Crombeen – Phil McRae – Ryan Reaves

McRae did see some time on left wing Thursday night as the Blues looked to generate offense in their comeback bid. Some additional shuffling may come during the game getting Phil on for shifts with greater offensive opportunity. He’s done his job as a 4th line center and a little promotion could be in order if the Blues fall behind. Give the 20 year old some credit, he’s performed pretty well at the NHL level when there were concerns about handling the elevated physical play.

With Jackman out, the pairings are a toss up. The Blues really do favor a left handed shot paired with a right handed shot. Best guess:

Eric Brewer – Erik Johnson
Ian Cole – Alex Pietrangelo
Tyson Strachan – Roman Polak

(Update: Per Jeremy Rutherford, the defensive pairs will be Brewer-Johnson, Pietrangelo-Polak and Cole-Strachan)

Per Lou Korac, Jaroslav Halak will start in net. Per Puck-Rakers, Halak will take on third year netminder Steve Mason.

Career Numbers
Mason vs Blues: 3-5-1, 2.99 GAA, .888 save percentage
Halak vs. Blue Jackets: 2-1-1, 2.88 GAA, .904 save percentage

The Blues are happy to take on Mason. Mathieu Garon, Mason’s counterpart, has much better numbers and success against the Blues. Posting a career record of 10-4-1 with a 2.59 GAA and .907 save percentage.

Columbus will be without agitating forward Ethan Moreau. He is out with a Rib injury. Defenseman Mike Commodore has been banished to the Blue Jacket’s AHL affiliate, the Syrcause Crunch, since requesting a trade.

Speaking of the Crunch, former forward Nikita Filatov was drafted two spots behind Blues defensemen Alex Pietrangelo in the 2008 draft. Taken 4th and 6th overall respectively. Many Blues fans called for the young Russian to be taken and were upset with the drafting of “another defenseman”. Think the Blues made the right call? Petro has 5 goals, 22 points, Plus-10 rating while playing over 20 minutes a game. Filatov has just 7 assists in 23 games seeing barely 12 minutes of ice time a night. Trust in Jarmo…

Anyone else hoping for another Oshie hit on Rick Nash?

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