Word is that you MIGHT remember this guy. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

Road wins are really cool, y’know. The St. Louis Blues were able to snag a big two points in Ottawa on Tuesday in Brian Elliott’s return to the place he called home to begin his National Hockey League career, earning a win over the Ottawa Senators 3-1. There was an early scrap between two familiar opponents, and it was recapped here. Zenon Konopka is ready and willing to throw down at a moment’s notice, and he did just that with BJ Crombeen, though the fight was largely unspectacular and ended in a draw. With that fight, the Blues move up to 26 fighting majors collected on the NHL season, still good for a 10th place tie with the Buffalo Sabres and Minnesota Wild in that category. With the draw, the team’s record moves to 12-3-11. That is still quite impressive, I would say.

Welcome to the swamp! The Blues’ road train moves to Newark, NJ to face the New Jersey Devils. You may recall that a recent popular figure on Blues teams of the past signed with this squad in the offseason, and while I’ll mention him later, you can only imagine how fired up he will be to see his old squad. As a result of some tough veteran members of the team, some youngsters needing to play because of injuries and some other acquisitions through various sources, the Devils have themselves a fisticuffs-ready club, top to bottom. The Devils are tied for seventh in the NHL with the Anaheim Ducks, each team having 28 fights. The Devils’ fight record is quite alright at 11-8-9.

You may recognize the Devils’ leader in fighting majors this season, as he is our aforementioned “Old Friend” (and one of my personal favorites due to his sheer perseverance). Yes, I’m talking about the one and only Cam Janssen (6’0”, 215lbs, 0-1-5), who has collected six fights this season. Following CamSmash is the veteran duo of Eric Boulton (6’1”, 225lbs, 4-1-0) and David Clarkson (6’1”, 200lbs, 3-1-1), who have each fought five times. Ryan Carter (6’1”, 200lbs, 0-2-1, Day-To-Day with a hand injury) has fought three times, but is not expected to play tonight. Brad Mills (6’1”, 195lbs, 1-1-0, recently sent to Albany of the AHL) has fought twice this season. Mark Fraser (6’4”, 220lbs, 1-0-0 as a Devil and 1-0-1 overall, traded to Anaheim in December and currently in the AHL) fits a special category as he HAS fought twice this season, but only one of them was with New Jersey. Other Devils “solo fighters” include another guy in that Anaheim trade, Rod Pelley (5’11”, 200lbs, Win, traded to Anaheim in December), as well as team superstar Ilya Kovalchuk (6’3”, 230lbs, Win), Tim Sestito (5’11”, 200lbs, Draw, currently with AHL Albany), Alexander Urbom (6’4”, 215lbs, Draw, currently with AHL Albany) and Calder Trophy candidate Adam Henrique (6’0”, 195lbs, Loss).

I’m pretty sure if Janssen plays, he will be fighting someone. Expect the opponent to be the guy who basically took his job, Ryan Reaves, if anyone. It would be hard to imagine him fighting anyone else.

Two wins in a row over the Eastern Conference would be mighty fun, for sure.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

How correct was the decision? The Blues seem to be happy with how things have turned out, as their current record and Elliott’s numbers are pushing the team toward heights unseen by the club since before the lockout. Elliott seems to be happy with how things have turned out, as he signed a two-year, one-way, multi-million dollar extension with the team to continue being not a backup, but a “1-A” option behind Halak, and perhaps playing behind the strongest defensive hockey team he has ever played behind. All reports seem to be that Halak and Elliott seem to have a great working relationship, and it appears they will continue to be a tandem for a couple more years.

But this raises the issue of what the future holds for Bishop, the tall St. Louis native who would love to have a shot to hold a job long-term with the club. The prospects of that happening seem to be diminishing quickly, and it isn’t only because of Halak and Elliott. Yes, Bishop’s backup in Peoria is central to this whole situation, as it is widely considered that Jake Allen is the Blues’ “Goaltender Of The Future™”. It is considered that Jake Allen COULD be ready for the big club in . . . you guessed it, two years. At that time, both Halak and Elliott will have contracts that will expire. Further complicating the issue is Bishop’s Restricted Free Agent status, which will be cancelled if he does not make a certain amount of NHL appearances this season, which will not be possible if Halak and Elliott stay healthy.

With all that considered . . . what is the club to do with Bishop? It is an interesting conundrum, with many possible scenarios, but I am of the mind to believe that Bishop will be moved ahead of the February 27^th trade deadline.

He will not go by himself. I think it would be part of a package to bring in a scorer or a playmaker to help down the stretch drive, and the other pieces of such a package would be difficult to speculate on at the moment. Such a trade would most certainly hurt the Peoria Rivermen and their stretch drive toward the American Hockey League playoffs, sure, but Doug Armstrong – while mindful of their situation – is the general manager of the Blues, not the Rivermen, and big club success always trumps minor league success. He cannot risk losing a prime asset in Bishop – one that is widely considered to be NHL-ready – to unrestricted free agency when he can use him as part of a trade package to help the Blues THIS season . . . and possibly in seasons upcoming.

Keep in mind . . . I would LOVE to see Bishop succeed with this franchise. I just don’t think it will happen that way, unfortunately, and trading him now – when he’s arguably at the peak of his value and when the franchise could lose him in the offseason – as part of a package deal for an asset that can help the Blues seems the best option for both parties.

What say you, dear reader? Are Bishop’s days numbered with this franchise? I’m sure not all of you agree. Have at it in the comments.

Both men performed admirably here, but it wasn’t the greatest fight it could be. Part of the problem is that the two men got themselves a bit tangled in trying to punch each other AND protect themselves all at once. While it makes for worse fights, you have to protect yourself in a fight or else you’re going to get destroyed. The fight ended when Konopka gave Crombeen a bit of a “snap-mare takeover” (to borrow a wrestling term) after Crombeen’s final punch. This was a definite draw.

Could’ve been worse, I suppose.

He’s a badass fighter, he’s a entrepreneur, he’s a face-off wizard and he has an awesome Polish name. This is the current NHL leader in fighting majors, Zenon Konopka. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

Well, that sucked. The St. Louis Blues were hoping to break their struggles with the Nashville Predators, but instead found out how good Pekka Rinne really is . . . AGAIN . . . in a 3-1 regulation loss in Tennessee on Saturday. A great fight happened, and it was recapped here. Sure, Ryan Reaves performed admirably AND bloodied fight veteran Brian McGrattan, but McGrattan won by landing more quality punches. So the Blues move up to 25 fighting majors collected on the National Hockey League season, which is good for a 10th place tie with the Minnesota Wild in that category, and with the fight loss, the team’s record moves to 12-3-10.

Now, back to Canada, and in this instance it’s Canada’s national capital to face Brian Elliott’s former team, the Ottawa Senators. The Sens were hot to begin the 2011-2012 campaign, but since have cooled to the tune of losing six straight games leading into tonight’s match. Not only that, Elliott played well enough to earn an All-Star Game appearance in his old stomping grounds, and now he’s back. That said, this could be a trap game, but who knows? Anyway, the Sens are one of the top fighting teams in the league, largely due to one man (he is pictured above, but more on him later). They are in fifth by themselves with 36 fighting majors collected on the NHL season. Their fight record? It is perfectly even and average, at 12-12-12. (No, that is not a typographical error.)

The Sens’ leader in fights also leads individual fighters in the NHL and is a face-off wizard, Zenon Konopka (6’0”, 209lbs, 6-7-3), with 16 fighting majors collected on the season. Following him is Chris Neil (6’1”, 215lbs, 3-1-1) with five fights. Noted league meathead Matt Carkner (6’4”, 237lbs, 2-1-0) and Zack Smith (6’2”, 212lbs, 0-1-2) have each fought three times. Nick Foligno (6’0”, 210lbs, 1-0-1), rookie Colin Greening (6’3”, 212lbs, 0-0-2) and Jesse Winchester (6’1”, 206lbs, 0-1-1, on IR with a concussion) have each fought twice. Solo fighters include Brian Lee (6’3”, 205lbs, Draw, on IR with the dreaded “Lower Body Injury”), former Coyote Kyle Turris (6’1”, 195lbs, Draw) and recent top-ten pick Jared Cowen (6’5”, 230lbs, Loss).

My guess is that if there IS a fight, it would be between Reaves and Konopka, despite Konopka giving two inches and about 30 pounds to Reaves. Konopka is one tough S.O.B., and he commands respect just about every time he drops his gloves.

Time to get back to some winning, don’t you think?

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

Last night, we witnessed a scrap between young St. Louis Blues brawler Ryan Reaves and Nashville Predators enforcer, veteran journeyman pugilist Brian McGrattan. This was perhaps Reaves’ stiffest test of any man he’s squared off with in the past, and while “The Grim Reaver” passed with flying colors, he did not win the fight. Let’s go to the video, shall we?

What an EXCELLENT fight this was. It looked as though McGrattan was going to breeze by Reaves in this one after the first 15 seconds or so, but Reaves came CHARGING back. Both landed a great deal of rights, including a whole bunch of overhand rights from McGrattan that popped Reaves in the back of the dome. The biggest punch was landed by Reaves, one that cut McGrattan on the forehead (perhaps because the impact was on the edge of the helmet), but because of the sheer volume of punches landed, McGrattan gets an easy decision in this one.

The precursor to this fight was very important. Right before this fight started, there was a whistle and a scuffle by the benches between these two. Sensing what was coming, it seemed both Ken Hitchcock and Barry Trotz just simply decided, “Y’know what? They want to go at it. Let’s just keep ‘em out there and let ‘em handle their business.” I commend the two coaches for this . . . as a result, we witnessed two men handling their business like men and giving us a great fight to boot. This is one MAJOR reason why I will weep if the National Hockey League ever decides that fighting should be banned.

If you remember the old Roller Hockey International League, this guy – Francis Bouillon – played in it. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

It can never be pretty, but it can always be effective. That’s a pretty accurate description of many of the St. Louis Blues’ wins this season, and the 1-0 victory last night over the Los Angeles Kings was no exception to that edict. Despite some excitement, there were no fighting majors issued in this contest, so the Blues remain at 24 fighting majors collected on the National Hockey League season, which is good for 12th place all by their lonesome in said category. The Blues’ fight record remains at 12-2-10.

There’s no rest for the weary, so the Blues now take the short flight to Tennessee for a date with the Nashville Predators. Over recent years, experts have taken to calling the Preds the “Detroit Red Wings of the South”. I disagree with it for several reasons . . . 1) The Wings tend to retain their young talent, the Preds do not. 2) Preds fans are, on average, more likable than Wings fans, judging by Preds fans’ tolerance of me through drunken ramblings while in their presence in their fair city, as opposed to idiotic screed I’ve seen from Wings fans over the years. 3) Playoff success over the years is just not matched between the two. 4) As much as I like Shea Weber as a player (and I think he’s one of the best defenseman in the league), he probably won’t ever hold a candle to Nicklas Lidstrom, simply one of the greatest defensemen I’ve ever seen. 5) Pekka Rinne blows Jimmy Howard out of the water talent-wise and in terms of long-term success potential. And finally . . . 6) Downtown Nashville is about a gazillion times better than Downtown Detroit. We’ve covered the Preds three times here on the Throwdown Lowdown report previously (October 8th, December 17th and December 30th). Since the last time the Blues played the Preds, only two fights have been added, so they’re now up to 15 fighting majors on the season, good for a tie for 23rd place in the NHL with the now-less-than-truculent Toronto Maple Leafs in that category. Despite the lack of fights, their fight record is pretty decent at 7-4-4.

Preds players who have fought this year begin with journeyman enforcer Brian McGrattan (6’4”, 235lbs, 4-1-0) with five fighting majors on the season and one of my least favorite NHL players, Jordin Tootoo (5’9”, 199lbs, 2-0-1), with three. Solo fighters include newly-acquired Brandon Yip (6’1”, 195lbs, Win as a Predator, had not fought as an Avalanche player this season), Blake Geoffrion (6’1”, 190lbs, Draw, currently with AHL Milwaukee), Matt Halischuk (6’0”, 185lbs, Draw), Mike Fisher (6’1”, 208lbs, Draw), Colin Wilson (6’1”, 210lbs, Loss), Francis Bouillon (5’8”, 198lbs, Loss) and Zack Stortini (6’4”, 215lbs, Loss to Ryan Reaves, currently with AHL Milwaukee).

Will there be a fight in this one? It’s not overly likely, but I will not rule it out. Other than video clips, I’ve never seen Bouillon get into a fight. The problem here is that while he’s tougher than a two-dollar steak, he’s undersized, limiting his matchup options. But he could go with someone like Scott Nichol, I suppose, in a fight that would be chock full of grit.

So . . . one win over Nashville. Would it kill you boys to do this much?

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

I wish the Kings wore these uniforms all the time, actually. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

Geez, that was a while away from hockey, wasn’t it? I can barely remember who played against the St. Louis Blues in their last game . . . oh wait, now I remember! It was the Pittsburgh Penguins, who were able to sneak out of St. Louis with a 3-2 shootout win. Despite another stupid hit by Matt Cooke on Barret Jackman on which some folks, SERIOUSLY, accuse Jackman of diving (I MEAN, REALLY? FACE-FIRST INTO THE BOARDS? WOW. Sorry, Wysh, that’s not what happened there.), there were no fights in this contest. That’s okay, though, I would’ve rather had a win. Alas . . . the Blues have collected 24 fighting majors on the National Hockey League season, which is good for a 11th place tie with the Winnipeg Jets in said category. The Blues’ fight record remains at 12-2-10.

The team’s first opponent after the break comes in off a very controversial regulation victory on Wednesday . . . yes, it’s the Los Angeles Kings! We have covered the Kings twice in this space this season (October 18th and November 22nd). You may recall that the Blues lost both of those games, but Terry Murray was still the Kings’ coach back then. But, the Blues beat the Kings four times in the 2010-2011 season. Hockey is such a zany game, eh? Anyway, the Kings have a few fighters but are definitely not considered to be part of hockey’s elite fighting teams, especially since Darryl Sutter took over, which is amazing when you think about what kind of game all the Sutters played. Oh well . . . the Kings have collected 18 fighting majors on the NHL season, good for 21st in the league by themselves in that category. Their fight record is not exactly pretty, at 3-6-9.

The Kings are led in fights by Kyle Clifford (6’2”, 208lbs, 1-2-3) with six fights on the season. Following him is former Blackhawk Colin Fraser (6’1”, 191lbs, 1-3-1 including a draw with Scott Nichol that shouldn’t have even counted as a fight) with five fights. Veteran brawler Kevin Westgarth (6’4”, 234lbs, 1-0-1), former Flyers Captain Mike Richards (5’11”, 199lbs, 0-0-2) and Willie Mitchell (6’3”, 208lbs, 0-1-1) each have fought twice. Your lone solo fighter on this Kings squad is pancake-eating extraordinaire Dustin Penner (6’4”, 242lbs, Draw).

Westgarth DID play on Wednesday, but he has been used sparingly as of late, so while he is their best fighter, there is no guarantee he’ll even play. Look for Clifford to want a rematch with Ryan Reaves after getting destroyed by Reaves on one punch in a fight last season, as that rematch has yet to happen. Otherwise, look for a great battle between two solid teams fighting for Western Conference playoff positioning.

Grease the tires and light the fires, boys. It’s time to march toward the playoffs, and a win over the Kings would be a great kick-off.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

For example, last year, the Blues were a young team with a solid nucleus with which to draw on. But apart from the likes of Ty Conklin, Barret Jackman and Andy McDonald, there were no veterans around to draw experience from. When you also have a coach like Davis Payne that has a limited amount of experience outside the organization, that situation can turn into a disaster. What did they learn? 1) You can’t always lean on youth. 2) A young coach with young players is not always the way to go. How did they fix those two issues? 1) Sign veteran players who have been through the rigors of successful playoff season (Jason Arnott, Jamie Langenbrunner, Scott Nichol and Kent Huskins). 2) Relieve Payne of his duties (though they waited until November to do this) and hire Ken Hitchcock, an ultra-experienced coach with a Stanley Cup ring on his resume.

At the time David Perron went down in early November 2010 with a concussion, the Blues were flying high and considered one of the darlings of the 2010-2011 season. AFTER the Perron injury, which kept him out of the lineup until this past December, combined with the injuries of many other key players, the team’s season basically went into the crapper, never to return to the level it had attained earlier because the AHL players who were called up (the likes of TJ Hensick, Nathan Oystrick and others) were not even close to replacement-level. What did the team learn? You can’t predict injuries, so it’s good to have some depth at both the NHL and AHL level that can step in and produce. How did they fix this issue? The aforementioned signings of Arnott, Langenbrunner, Nichol and Huskins, combined with other signings to supplement youth such as Jonathan Cheechoo, Danny Syvret, Brett Sterling and others who could reasonably step in and do damage at the NHL level if called upon (though, obviously, the team would like it not to come to that even yet). One of my favorite sports sayings is “It’s better to be lucky than good”, and the Blues’ luck with injuries this year is a crowning success on that front, but it’s nice that the team has some players to fall back on in case it, ummmm, DOES hit the fan.

Last year, when Jaroslav Halak struggled around mid-season, the Blues had the aforementioned veteran backup, Conklin, behind him. As much as I like ConkBlock as a person and as a competitor, he just was not to the level of Halak by any stretch of the imagination, and at times the Blues had to let Halak slumber along and struggle to stop pucks basically because they had no one else to turn to. Ben Bishop was called up when Halak was injured, and as much as I like The Bish, he is yet to be anywhere near the level Halak is. What did the Blues learn from this? If you have a young goaltender, you need a strong backup in case he struggles. What did they do to fix the problem? With Jake Allen down the pipeline as the envied Goalie Of The Future™ but not yet ready to take the reins of a possible year-in year-out playoff team, the Blues took a flier on a young veteran goaltender with recent starting experience named Brian Elliott, signing him to a one-year two-way contract while giving him a shot to win the backup goaltender job. You may have heard of him . . . this, also, shows the “better to be lucky than good” quote to be true on both the Blues and Elliott’s parts – the Blues getting a player who ended up having an All-Star caliber season after signing him to a do-or-die contract, Elliott backstopping one of the top defensive teams in the National Hockey League, which led to the kind of numbers and success that leads a goaltender to go to the All-Star Game. Mind you, this is the Blues’ BACKUP GOALTENDER that went to the All-Star Game, and it was well-deserved. That, my friends, is simply amazing.

There are many reasons a team can be successful in a given time period, but this year’s Blues squad has shown to be successful not just because of luck and maturing, but mainly because they learned from mistakes made in past seasons . . . mainly, the season right before it. Because of the lessons learned, the Blues have righted the ship and become a veritable juggernaut that may legitimately lay claim to being a Stanley Cup contender for the next decade to come. And that “Cup Contender” line is not hyperbole . . . I believe that to be FACT.

What say you, dear reader? Is learning from the past the biggest reason for the Blues’ success in ’11-’12? Or do you think other factors like luck, the completed rebuild with veterans added or maybe even another reason play into this run more than anything else? Have at it in the comments, party people

Deryk Engelland has my utmost respect. If you like hockey fights, he should have your utmost respect as well. Image via Dan4th/Flickr

A good effort is not good enough in Detroit, but it shows you’re ready to battle. The St. Louis Blues played well enough to beat just about every team in the league last night, but they did not play well enough to beat the Detroit Red Wings at home. The 3-1 win, while it derails a hot stretch by the team, does not kill too much of the momentum the team held up to this point. Also, quite unexpectedly, there was a fight in this contest. Brad Stuart, after planting Alex Pietrangelo on a hit I felt was legal but some have thought to be dirty, answered the bell against Chris Stewart and got his ass handed to him. Serious demerits went to Stuart for punching Stewart (confused yet?) after both had fallen to the ice. That’s crap, Brad. (The video of the whole skirmish can be found here.) So the Blues now have collected 24 fighting majors on the National Hockey League season, which remains good for 10th alone in that category. With yet ANOTHER fight victory, the Blues’ fight record stays impressive, now at 12-2-10.

You may skip this, or wipe your ass with a printed copy of it, if you wish. That’s my official comment on the first time I’ve ever been personally flame-bombed by a Red Wings blogger. They couldn’t pay me to care.

Moving on . . . let’s welcome the red hot Pittsburgh Penguins to town! Yes, even though this team is missing Sidney Crosby, this team has seemed to find cohesiveness, in addition to finding ways to win hockey games. Evgeni Malkin might have a lot to do with that (I hear he’s pretty good at hockey). The Blues were able to defeat the Penguins in Pittsburgh in overtime on November 23rd (here’s the report from prior to that game), and there was a fight in that contest (you’ll find video in the next paragraph). In fact, the Pens are not in the least afraid of fisticuffs, unlike last night’s opponent. The Penguins have collected 25 fighting majors on the NHL season, good for a tie for eighth in that category with the New Jersey Devils. Their fight record is relatively average at 9-7-9.

The Pens are led in fights by Arron Asham (5’11’, 205lbs, 5-1-1, out indefinitely with a concussion), who has seven. Deryk Engelland (6’2”, 202lbs, 2-2-2 including a loss to Ryan Reaves) has worked six scraps. The awesomely-named Tyler Kennedy (5’11”, 183lbs, 1-1-1) has fought three times. Craig Adams (6’0”, 197lbs, 0-1-1), St. Louis native Joe Vitale (5’11”, 205lbs, 0-1-1) and Eric Tangradi (6’4”, 221lbs, 0-1-1) have each fought twice. Solo fighters include Matt Niskanen (6’0”, 200lbs, Win), Ben Lovejoy (6’2”, 215lbs, Draw) and Chris Kunitz (6’0”, 193lbs, Draw).

With Asham out, your best bet for a scrap would be a rematch between Engelland and Reaves (being that he sat out last night and the team lost, I will assume Reaves plays this game). I think it would be a great tilt, as the first one was. Otherwise, I’d love to see hometown kid Vitale mix it up with someone, just because it would be incredibly fun, and funny, to watch.

Last game before the All-Star Break. A home win would be an awesome send-off.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

You just got Kronwall’d because I don’t know why I even bother covering Red Wings fights. Image via jpowers65/Flickr

In a game I felt the St. Louis Blues HAD to win to keep their reputation as a league-wide menace, the team held their end of the deal by downing the Buffalo Sabres 4-2, despite an extremely sluggish first period and a few late calls that left a lot to the imagination. While the two teams always seemed to be on the precipice of getting into a brawl (the incident between TJ Oshie and Patrick Kaleta comes to mind), only one fight occurred, and it was a good one between Ryan Reaves and young Joe Finley. Finley held his own, but Reaves delivered a knockout blow in taking the victory (video here). So the Blues now have collected 23 fighting majors on the National Hockey League season, which remains good for 10th by themselves in that category. With yet another fight victory, the Blues’ fight record stays impressive, now at 11-2-10.

I really don’t know why I even bother to waste energy on this report for tonight’s opponent, the Detroit Red Wings. Nothing ever changes with these guys . . . they don’t fight, even when they really should, and while you can sugarcoat it with as hard a candy shell as you can find, it reeks of a team that chooses not only to not be physical, but not to stand up for themselves either. This may explain why the Wings tend to have dropped out of the playoffs in embarrassing fashion the last few years, but that’s neither here nor there. Despite seemingly not needing to cover this team, we HAVE covered this team a few times in the past (November 15th, December 6th, December 27th and December 31st). The Wings remain in dead last in the NHL with six fighting majors collected on the season. Their fight record is a bit less than robust, obviously, at 2-4-0.

Of those six Wings fights, Justin Abdelkader (6’1”, 219lbs, 1-1-0) has taken part in two of them. The other four have been split among Jonathan Ericsson (6’4”, 221lbs, Win), Todd Bertuzzi (6’3”, 229lbs, Draw), youngster Jakub Kindl (6’3”, 216lbs, Loss) and veteran Mike Commodore (6’4”, 227lbs, Loss to BJ Crombeen).

I’ll go ahead and predict no fighting for this one. I think I stand a great chance of being right. It should be a pretty good game, though.

One-game roadie? This team can do it. Let’s see it happen THIS time.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights