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Kariya To Sit Out 2010-11

By Jeff Quirin on August 28, 2010

Friday afternoon Paul Kariya’s agent, Don Baizley, released a statement saying that Paul will sit out the entirety of the 2010-11 season due to post-concussion syndrome.

I guess we know now why Paul was saying he wasn’t sure if he would play next season all throughout the summer.

For a more in depth look, hop on over to HockeyIndependent to catch my piece there.

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Throwdown Lowdown – Blues @ Islanders 3-11-10

By Tyler Atwood on March 11, 2010

Tim Jackman is ugly

Looks like Tim Jackman is Mike Ricci's cousin. Image via sharkspage.com, and avert your eyes before clicking the photo for the full-size version

Off-Topic to start: if you don’t know (chances are likely that you don’t), my favorite music band is 311.  Today, March 11th, is a national holiday for us 311-heads.  Yes, it’s 311 Day!  They’re playing a huge live show in Las Vegas, which is being webcast worldwide.  Since I know just about all of their tunes by heart and there will be hockey on the tube, I won’t watch.  But I’m sure it’ll be fun.  And if you listen to any alternative radio stations today, you’ll probably hear a few 311 tracks today, as traditionally today is the day a whole bunch of fellow 311-heads are calling to hear their favorite 311 tunes.  Happy 311 Day, y’all!

The Blues are coming off a disappointing effort on Saturday against the Colorado Chris Stewarts Avalanche.  There was one early scrap involving BJ Crombeen and Cody McLeod, which ended in a draw after Crombeen fell on top of McLeod.  The draw brings the Blues to 57 fights on the season, still staying strong at 5th league-wide.  Their ‘09-’10 fight record now stands at 23-18-16.

The New York Islanders have one of the younger, more exciting rebuilding teams in the league.  I won’t compare them to the Pittsburgh Penguins circa 2005, since that would be unfair to both squads.  However, they have high-end young stars in John Tavares and Kyle Okposo, among others.  But with this youth comes an unwillingness to throw down the gloves.  They have done so only 24 times this season, good for 26th in the NHL.  Their fight record is a God-awful 4-9-11.  Among the seven players that have contested these fights, only two are currently in Uniondale, representing 11 of those 24 fights.  When the Blues and Islanders matched up on November 21st in The ‘Lou, the two teams predictably did not throw down the gloves.

There is only one current Islander that is a threat to get into a fracas, winger Tim Jackman (6′4″, 210lbs, 2-4-4), pictured above.  Jackman, who is of no relation to our own Barret Jackman, brings size and a nasty mean streak about him.  He is not a threat to score, but he is the kind of guy that does the dirty things to help young teams along a rebuilding process.  The only other fighter still with the Islanders is defenseman Bruno Gervais (6′1″, 205lbs, 0-1-0).  The other five fighters that are not currently with the Islanders are center Nate Thompson (6′0″, 207lbs, 1-1-3 with the Isles and 1-1-4 overall, waived to Tampa Bay on January 21st), defenseman and noted Philadelphia SUV-defeater Brendan Witt (6′2″, 223lbs, 0-1-2, in the AHL since February 5th), defenseman Andy Sutton (6′6″, 245lbs, 0-1-1, traded to Ottawa on March 2nd), winger Matt Martin (6′2″, 192lbs, 1-0-1, in the AHL since February 11th) and winger Joel Rechlicz (6′4″, 220lbs, 0-1-0, in the AHL since October 21st).

My dream fight matchup this evening involves a couple of heavyweights, but it is all dependent on how Blues coach Davis Payne wants to play his hand.  Assuredly, you would think Tim Jackman would play, but will the Blues ride with DJ King?  King did not suit up on Saturday.  If he’s not in the owner’s box tonight, I want him to face off against Jackman.  They’re both big, strong, tough and ornery.  This is about the only fight I would want to see between these two teams, but admittedly, the chances of a fight in this one are slim even if King DOES play.

If you want to be a playoff team, this is a game the Blues MUST have.  Go get it!

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

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GameBlog 03-06-10: Blues vs Avalanche

By Jeff Quirin on March 6, 2010

Colorado Avalanche

vs.

St. Louis Blues

Pregame

Since the Olympics ended the Blues are 2-0-0 following decisive wins in Phoenix and Dallas. In both games, the starting netminder for the opposition was chased. Tonight’s task against the Colorado Avalanche will be much more difficult. If the Blues want a chance to split the season series (they are 0-2 so far) and gain ground on the 8th spot in the West, the post Olympic trends need to continue.

- Quick puck movement.
- Responsible defensive play by all five on the ice.
- Speed through the neutral zone (I’m watching your David Perron).
- Three lines producing goals.
- Chris Mason plays like its March 2009 all over again.

Colorado is no push over team. They are no “Cinderella” anymore either. While they did surprise most of the NHL nation by not being in the bottom three, they have maintained that high level of play all season. After the Olympics they have been presented with a challenge. Their #1 center was the #1 center for Team USA and is likely a little tired following his Silver Medal performance. They have made multiple deals at the deadline, altering their team chemistry. Since the Olympic break they are 1-2-0, giving up 3 goals in and at least two power play goals in each game. The Avs are at a cross roads. They can either gain their winning ways back as they open a  three game home stand with the Blues or slip down as teams like Nashville and Detroit move up. After these three games Colorado has six of their next nine on the road. Colorado needs a big game.

The Blues need to prepare for that big game and early jump from the Avs. The Avs have beaten the Blues twice and will use that to build confidence and momentum.

The Blues need the prototypical road game. Tight checking, high energy, smart decisions and timely goaltending. One key will be getting pucks on net. In each of the Avs last three games they have yielded at least 30 shots on goal against Craig Anderson. Anderson has been good, but he has seen a lot of rubber and let in more goals than usual. The Blues recent finishing ability needs to continue.

The play of the Steen-McClement-Boyes line needs to continue as well. Boyes has two goals in the last two games. Steen and McClement each have one. Timely secondary scoring will be huge of Colorado and shut down either the Backes or Berglund line.

John Kelly FYI’d on Twitter today that Milan Hejduk will be back tonight. Big boost to their offensive punch coming back. Hejduk, Stewart, and Mueller down the right side…not too shabby.

I haven’t heard about who is in net for the Blues yet, my guess would be Mason. I would also think that Davis Payne doesn’t alter the lines and pairings. We shall see. I will be out this afternoon, so if I catch any updates I will get them posted as soon as possible.

UPDATE @ 630pm:
Dan O’Neill has the Morning Skate blog up for StlToday today.

Line-Up FYIs:
King and Sydor Scratches.
Janssen Suspension (out)
Winchester back in (my guess is w/ Crombeen and D’Agostini).

O’Neill also talks about Alex Pietrangelo being named the #1 rookie to watch for 2010 by The Hockey News. Sorry Dan, that’s old news. We got the story here before today. ;)

First Period

It was a rough first 90 seconds, but the game started flowing after that.

The Blues did a good job matching the Avs physical presence and pace.

Barret Jackman had a couple of mental gaffes. NOt sure why he felt the need to cross over in front of Polak.

Blue shad good possession and chances on the power play, just no conversion.

Brewer got a shot through and Perron tips it home. Avs quick strike back and make it 2-1 at the end of the period.

Mental breakdowns defensively have left Mason out to dry on both goals. EJ has been good save the blunder with him and Brewer behind the net leading to Stewart’s goal.  Who, by the way, is killing the Blues with 4 goals and 3 assists in 2 games and 1 period against the Blues this season.

Second Period

The Avs sure have Chris Mason’s # this season. After the Blues chase teh starter in two straight, Mason is chased in the second.

As much as the first two were on the 5 skaters on the ice in front of Mason, the next two were on him.

Chris Stewart…though the second he now has 6 goals and 4 assists in the three games against the Blues this season.

The Avs have just capitalized on their chances where the Avs have really locked down the Blues second chances. Between Anderson’s rebound control and the Avs blocking out, the Blues aren’t generating much after the initial shot.

Every time the Blues crawl back, the Avs stomp on their hands, not much longer before the fall.

Where was the response to the Ryan Wilson hit? He’s creamed Oshie already and now D’Agostini. Was the only “tit for tat” Backes on Hejduk at the end of the second?

Speaking of Backes, where has that line been tonight? The 4th line has created more than the Backes line has. Not that impressed with all three dfensive pairings. No impact from Colaiacovo. Weaver is Weaver. Some mental mistakes by Johnson, Brewer, and Jackman have lead to goals. Polak is Polak.

Two out of three ain’t bad?

Final Thoughts

In big games, your best players need to step up. Colorado had theris, but the Blues best did not.

Where was the Backes line? Did The 6 defensemen decide to just half ass it? Did Chris Mason need to sit in favor of Ty Conklin? Should Payne have played the historical stats for once? Lots of questions, but not so many answers.

This game had a 1st half of 09-10 feel to it. Wishy-washy goaltending, lots of shots and many low % in tight chances that Colorado boxed out. The Blues had matched pace and play, but were run down by the blitzkrieg like counter attack of the Avs. David Backes said it very well in teh post game interviews. We (Blues) didn’t play our game and didn’t have guys winning battles.  When we lost battles they transitioned back up ice (paraphrasing). What the Avs did to the Blues is what they did to the Coyotes and Stars. Pressured them at every turn and took their game away. The Blues stood and watched a period (like Backes said) and it cost them the game.

Blues fans should give credit to the Avs. They are no push over team. They have high end talent with Stastny and Hejduk supported by a solid supporting cast that is well coached. They can attack and score with the best of teams. The Blues had no answer tonight. The right answer would be better goaltending and smarter play from first to last whistle. That just didn’t happen tonight. Anderson out performed Mason, big time.

The Blues need to look at this game as a reminder of what can go wrong when you don’t work hard enough from player 1 to player 20.In the first three games of this trip, the Blue shave 2/3 of the possible points, 4 out of 6. In a maintenance scenario where you are already in the post season, that’s fine. When you need to climb and will spend Sunday through Wednesday off, you need 5 of 6 or 6 of 6. Perhaps that is unrealistic, but its what would have to happen.

If there are any bright spots for the Blues it would be the play of the Berglund and McClement lines. Those 6 players combined for 3 goals and 6 points in the game. Steen continues to take his game to another level as does Berglund. D’Agostini played another solid game on limited ice time.

Winchester started hot and finished bland. A growing trend that is very troublesome as the Blues need Brad to create needed energy and enthusiasm.

I know that Backes and Johnson are tired and want to go home, but the Olympics are not a valid excuse when they played as well as they did in the two games prior.

The Blues now have 4 full days off before their next game on Thursday against the Islanders in New York. The reset button was pushed and the third period began the process. Now comes the time for the players to recharge and right their ship again. Blues fans were flying high after two good games, now comes a dose of reality. The Blues are close, but have a very difficult task. The games aren’t that easy adn teh team as a whole needs to remember that.

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Throwdown Lowdown – Blues @ Avalanche 3-6-10

By Tyler Atwood on March 6, 2010

David Koci

"Hey dude, wanna have a beer after the game?" Image via UPI (but you probably won't be seeing David Koci tonight)

The Blues aren’t just beating people on the scoreboard, they’re punching people too.  There were two fights on Thursday between the Blues and Dallas Stars – one featuring expected contestants and one featuring not-so-expected contestants.  First, we had the long-awaited rematch between DJ King and Krys Barch.  King broke his hand on Barch’s helmet in their last fight back in November (a fight that King won).  King won the rematch handily.  Next, it was the second fight of Erik Johnson’s career.  He squared off against Jamie Benn, who was in the first fight in a regular season NHL game in his career.  Johnson controlled Benn early but Benn charged late and won the battle.  Despite the two fights, the Blues sunk back into 5th place in the league with 56 fights on the season and now sport a fight record of 23-18-15 in ‘09-’10.

Now the Blues are in Denver to face the Colorado Avalanche.  Four weeks ago, the Blues squared off in Denver, and the Throwdown Lowdown was on the case.  Since then, not including the two fights in their previous matchup with the Blues, the Avs have only fought twice.  They have no problems throwing down the gloves when they feel the need to, as evidenced by their 9th place standing with 47 fights.  Their fight record on the season is an underwhelming 9-14-24; however, two of those wins were against the Blues.  Both came in Denver on February 28th; David Koci edged King (and in a bit of irony, Koci injured his hand in the process) and Chris Stewart took down BJ Crombeen.

The only changes from the previous meeting are in the records of multiple fighters for the Avs: Koci is now 2-4-5, Stewart is now 3-0-2, Cody McLeod is now 2-3-9 and Matt Hendricks is now 1-3-3.  Otherwise, the information from the previous report is still accurate, except that Koci is on injured reserve

Despite Koci’s absence, I anticipate multiple fights in this game.  The Avs have played in three games since the Olympic Break (including one with mutual bitter rival, the Detroit Red Wings), but their only fight was on Wednesday with the Anaheim Ducks.  The Blues bring physicality, which seems to bring out the best in the big, tough Avs.  Assuming King suits up, look for him to fight someone like Stewart amidst the absence of Koci.  Also don’t be surprised if McLeod goes at it with someone like Crombeen or Brad Winchester.

The Blues haven’t lost since losing to Colorado, in Denver, back on February 8th.  Can the Blues avenge that loss, take down this almost-certain playoff club and continue this hot streak?  I SAY YES!

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

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Throwdown Lowdown – Red Wings @ Blues 2-9-10

By Tyler Atwood on February 9, 2010

Yeah, Brad May.

HEY, A RED WINGS FIGHT! WOW! Image via dailyvsvids.com

Things got a bit hairy at work today, so this is late in being posted.  Oh well, it happens from time to time.  Not only that, I put the wrong date down when I originally posted this.  That has now been fixed.

So not only did the Blues lose the game to the Avs yesterday, but they lost both fights – one by an edge, the other pretty much by a tail-kicking.  First, the matchup of heavyweights – DJ King, playing in his third game of the year, got into it with David Koci.  Both threw bombs, but Koci won by a nose, bringing King’s fight record to 1-1-0 this season.  The second one wasn’t really a fight . . . Chris Stewart pretty much manhandled BJ Crombeen, who was playing his first game back from a lower body injury.  Individually, Crombeen is now tied for 9th in the NHL with 14 fights, and with the loss his season record falls to 6-6-2.  The two fights bring the Blues to 50 fights on the year, still in 5th place and now just one behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for 4th.  The two losses bring their season record to 21-16-13.  Yes, they’re slippin’!

Remember how I essentially berated the Chicago Blackhawks last week for being weak as far as fighters are concerned?  Well, they have ABSOLUTELY nothing on the Detroit Red Wings.  It’s an embarrassment to the league that the franchise that gave us Gordie Howe is so weak on the fighting front.  How weak, you ask?  They are DEAD LAST in the league in number of fights this season . . . with 16.  SIXTEEN!  That’s less than a third of the Blues’ total for the season.  PATHETIC!  Even worse – when they DO go, they don’t even do it well – 4-6-6 on the season.  Any opportunity to laugh at the Red Wings is a great feeling.  Oh, and if you haven’t figured it out . . . the Blues and Red Wings have not fought each other this year.  OF COURSE NOT!  They fear us!

So how do I preview the fighters of a team that doesn’t fight?  Well, I’ll list all of them as they only sport seven fighters – only four of which are expected to possibly suit up tonight.  One player has scrapped in nine of the 16 fights, and he’s a familiar name to the fighting circuit – winger Brad May (6′1″, 213lbs, 4-3-2).  You’ll notice that he has all 4 fight victories for the Wings this year as well.  The only other Red Wing with multiple fights is defenseman Doug Janik (6′2″, 209lbs, 0-1-1), and he is currently with Grand Rapids of the AHL along with center Justin Abdelkader (6′1″, 215lbs, 0-0-1).  Winger Patrick Eaves (6′0″, 191lbs, 0-0-1) is day-to-day with an ankle issue and is currently listed as “doubtful”.  Others with fights this year include defensemen Derek Meech (5′11″, 200lbs, 0-1-0) and Jonathan Ericsson (6′4″, 220lbs, 0-0-1) as well as veteran winger and general pain-in-the-rear Dan Cleary (6′0″, 205lbs, 0-1-0, should be given an extra loss as he fell to Sharks’ non-fighter Devin Setoguchi . . . yikes!).

With King having played last night and the way they’ve used him since being brought back from Peoria, and with the fact that the Blues played less-than-spectacularly last night, the guess is that Cam Janssen will be reinserted into the lineup tonight.  If that’s the case, Janssen and May would be an intriguing matchup.  Honestly, anything involving a fight would be intriguing against this team.

The Red Wings bring rage to my eyes.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

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GameBlog 02-08-10: Blues vs. Avs

By Jeff Quirin on February 8, 2010

Colorado Avalanche

vs.

St. Louis Blues


Pregame

So it beings…

Could this be the biggest week in the Checketts Regime history? The Blues are up against a seven point wall, the total of points they are behind the 8th place Nashville Predators. With the Preds out of action tonight the Blues can climb to five points back with a hair of 20 games left. Anaheim does play LA tonight and could move 3 points back of the eight hole as well.

After tonight’s game the Blues hustle back to St. Louis (amid a nice snow storm) to play the Red Wings. They then have two days off before facing the new look Maple Leafs and best in the league Capitals. There is a strong possibility the Blues go pointless this week, setting them back to a double digit deficit. There is also an opportunity to take on (and take down) some of the best teams in the league. These four games can determine buyer vs. seller at the “two” trade deadlines. Colorado has been consistent, going 6-4-0 in their last 10, while not having the services of Milan Hejduk.

According to Strickland Weaver, Janssen, and Winchester are out. Crombeen, King, and Sydor are in. I’d imagine there will be some line changes tonight. Not really sure what they will be. Rutherford was under the weather (get well soon JR!) and there was no Morning Skate Blog today. Lou doesn’t have a blog up either. We’ll just fly blind together. My guess is neither goalie goes back to back this week…unless someone is red hot.

Will do my best to do period updates tonight. Enjoy the game all, it’s a big one.

First Period

In general the Blues would have to be happy with this period. They jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead on a nice shot by Brewer for his 6th. The Blues defensive zone coverage broke down to allow Galiardi’s 9th goal. Erik Johnson has a solid period and after a tremednous effort by Steen in the far corner, he set sup EJ for his 5th goal. Sadly the second Blues offensive zone penalty leads to Brandon Yip’s 10th goal. Period ends 2-2.

I like the speed and flow of the game, but am not really comfortable with Mason. I don’t like his reads and positioning on a few plays. Has anyone noticed how vulnerable Mason is high, glove side?

I really like Carlo…I’ve met him twice, pretty nice guy. However, it is painful to watch him play at times. The sliding play that wasn’t a smart one cost the Blues their 1-0 lead. Grant it Berglund could have taken Stewart’s body at the blueline, but Carlo has to man up one on one and take Galiardi.

Where has the Blues penalty kill gone? It just can’t make a timely stop right now. Is the Blues best penalty killer their goalie? Not right now.

I feel bad for Brad Boyes as he misses the net again. I do have to say, I thought he had some real jump in his step in that period. Keep at it Brad, you’ll come around.

One key reason the Blues had a solid period against a very good team? The Blues have won 15 of 23 faceoffs.

The Oshie-Backes pair continues to do well. Combined in the first period for 2 Assists, Plus-2, 1 Blocked Shot and great offensive zone pressure. McDonald should complement the line well.

Second Period

I am at a loss for words. I do not understand several events that period.

1. The absent mindedness of Mason in net.
2. The lack of attention to detail and mental decision making.
3. The phantom “hooking” call on TJ Oshie.

Does this all go back to Ottawa? Really? I know (and agree 100%) that the Blues make their own destiny, but the volume of questionable penalty calls is mind boggling.

After Conklin got in net the Blues seemed to come back some. However, the damage was done on Mason. He allowed three goals on six shots to open the period.

The Blues squandered a golden opportunity with the four minute double minor power play. Lots of chances, no goals.

Can the Blues win the third period 4-0? We shall see.

Third Period

The Avs really are that good. They have really only had one tanker of a season, otherwise they have been a fairly competitive team. It’s also amazing what a good goalie can do for a team.

The Blues tried, but the Avs had a counter for all the Blues chances.

Too many shots passed up on the power play.

Not much can be said. The Blues were shut down after Colorado struck back and they couldn’t regain their presence in the third either.

Recap

I know fans will want to put this on the refs. I’m about 50% of the way to that myself. However, the Blues recoiled and never spring back after Colorado went beserk on a weak Mason in the second. Ty Conklin stabelized the net, but by that point it was far too late.

- As pointed out by several on Twitter…Sydor/Colaiacovo were a combined minus-6, While Brewer and Johnson were a combined Plus-4 in a 5-2 loss. Johnson has elevated his game recently. Brewer has been solid while fans turn a blind eye to his improved play. Just a great game by that pairing.

- Jackman and Polak are such a solid duo. Fans like to ignore the positives of Barrett Jackman as well, but after Yip torpedo’d Jackman (or was that Trent Green circa 1999?), I thought for sure he was done for the night, if not longer. The warrior came back out and played his damnedest.

- Is there anyone besides McDonald, Oshie, Backes, and Steen capable of consistent offensive zone play? Berglund and Perron were virtually invisible. Try as Kariya might, he just isn’t that effective at producing anymore. The point producers touch…just isn’t there anymore.

- Credit Colorado for playing a full 60 at teh pace Coach Joe Sacco wanted. I was really impressed by their defensemen and their ability to transition and get in the play. I’ve been following Stewart (due to my keeper league) cloesly this year. The kid is a budding power forward, he just finds way to get points. The Avs moved the puck quickly and efficiently.

- After the Blues won 15 of 23 First Period face-offs, they ended the game winning 32 of 64 (50%). Face-offs are this teams Achilles Heel.

- Even though there was a penalty called on Oshie for the  “hook”, the puck went off an Avs stick and in the net. That is a goal. To add more insult to injury.

Next up is Detroit Tuesday night in snowy St. Louis. I wll be in attendance hoping for a better game than what I saw in my last 3.

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Throwdown Lowdown – Blues @ Avalanche 2-8-10

By Tyler Atwood on February 8, 2010

KAMIKAZE McLEOD!!!!! Image via the Washington PostFor those of you that care about football (remember, I’m a football guy first) . . . hopefully you enjoyed the Super Bowl and the commercials that came along with it.  Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints for a well-played Super Bowl and a victory that was earned and not handed.  What a game!  And as a lifelong Denver Broncos fans, all I have to say is . . . I guess the San Diego Chargers never really had a good use for Drew Brees, did they?  But enough about football analysis . . . this is a hockey blog.

I had the great honor of being in attendance for Saturday’s tilt between the Blues and the Blackhawks.  Despite the result, it was a great time – especially since there were TWO fights in the contest.  The first one – pretty much a hug-out between SIR JAXX (Barret Jackman) and Cam Barker (I blame it on Barker . . . he seemed not ready to throw fists, but . . . oh well) – was scored a draw at Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights, whereas the second fight between Eric Brewer and Andrew Ladd was called in favor of Ladd.  The second fight, I thought, was even, but I also am biased (obviously).  Jackman is now 1-0-2 on the season and Brewer is now 1-1-0.  With the two fights, the Blues did not move up or down in the season standings, holding steady at 5th place with 48 fights on the season and a 21-14-13 season fight record.

The Colorado Avalanche are one of those teams with a mixture of a bit of everything – youth, locker room vets, skill players, tough guys, grinders and big boys.  Much like the rest of the Northwest Division, the Avs are not allergic to fighting – they have fought a collective 43 times on the season, good for 7th place in the National Hockey League.  However, they do not have a propensity to win fights – they’re 7-14-22 on the season, this despite starting the season 0-8-10.  The Blues and Avs did not fight in the previous meeting between the two teams back on December 7th at home.

10 Avs have fought this season, and the leading fighters on the team are wingers Cody McLeod (6′2″, 210lbs, 2-3-8) and David Koci (6′6″, 238lbs, 1-4-5).  As you can see, McLeod is big but Koci (who last season was a Blue for, like, five minutes) is much bigger.  Center Matt Hendricks (6′0″, 215lbs, 1-3-2) is next on the list, but he is on IR with an ankle issue.  Others with multiple fights are winger Chris Stewart (6′2″, 228lbs, 2-0-2), defenseman Ryan Wilson (6′1″, 207lbs, 0-1-2), veteran winger Darcy Tucker (5′10″, 178lbs, 0-1-1) and winger Chris Durno (6′4″, 205lbs, 0-0-2).  Among these fighters are 6 of the 7 fight victories the Avs have recorded this season.  They LIKE to fight, they just don’t WIN fights.

The dream matchup of the evening involves whichever between Cam Janssen and DJ King plays and either Koci or McLeod.  If it’s King, I’d like to see him go at Koci.  If it’s Janssen, he and McLeod match up well size-wise.  I would also not be against a fight between someone like Jackman and a wily veteran like Tucker, although that’s a bit of a size mismatch.

One road game, then back home.  The Blues need to make this one count against a very formidable foe on in Denver.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

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Budaj has played in five NHL seasons, all with Colorado.

Around the NHL : Peter Budaj Interview

By Randall Ritchey on January 21, 2010

This will be my first “Around the NHL” story on this blog, but I feel its a good one to post. Even though its unrelated to anything Blues hockey, any hockey fan should enjoy this read.

Peter Budaj, a 27 year old goaltender born in Banska Bystrica, Slovkia, is the back-up goaltender for the Colorado Avalanche. He was the team’s 2nd around pick in the 2001 NHL entry draft and has played well over his five year career

Peter Budaj will look to help lead his team to the playoffs this year.

Peter Budaj will look to help lead his team to the playoffs this year.

in the National Hockey League, amassing a total of 85 wins, 69 losses and 22 overtime losses. His 2.72 goals-against-average along with his .903 save percentage are built up over his five years in the NHL, but this season, he has improved greatly on those two stats in general.

Budaj came over to North America to play junior hockey with the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors of the Ontario Hockey League. His first year in the OHL didn’t go as well as he might have liked, finishing the season 12 games under the .500 mark.
In his second season with his junior club, he helped them get back into the playoffs with very solid sophomore season. Finishing five games over .500, he helped lead his team to the playoffs. Budaj would also lead his team to the playoffs in a dominating third season where he found himself finish with a 26-9-5 record.
After hard work in the AHL where Budaj did struggle at times, finishing only one of three season above the .500 mark, Peter Budaj became a NHL goaltender.
Now we are back where we started. Some under value Peter Budaj in net, which could hurt them in a game. While not the most spectacular goaltender in the NHL, and not even the number one goalie on his team, Budaj’s career numbers do not lie.
He finished under the .500 mark for the first time in the NHL last year when the Avalanche underachieved and finished at the bottom of the Western Conference.  But with the Avs winning, and with Team Slovakia calling for the Olympics, I don’t think life could get much better for Peter.
Now that we have a little information on Peter Budaj and his career in hockey, let’s go to the interview. It’s not long, but it’s to the point. Six quick questions and answers for you to enjoy.

Budaj will represent Slovkia in the 2010 Olympics

Budaj will represent Slovkia in the 2010 Olympics

Q. First off, congratulations on making the Slovakian Olympic team, it has to be a huge honor.

A. Thank you. It is a great honor to be on a hockey team for my country.
Q. After a long road of getting to where you are now, do you feel it’s been worth all the sacrifices to get there?
A. Of course it is! I get to play an amazing game for a living. It has paid off. All of the long training day and nights and all the coaches in my face and telling me I am worthless is well worth it because it pushed me to be a better hockey player. If it wasn’t for that I wouldn’t be where I am now.
Q. What are you looking forward to most about the Olympics?
A. Just to be able to play for my country is overwhelming. I can’t wait to be able to work with some of the best hockey players from Slovakia again. I can maybe learn a thing or two from them. It’s a great experience.
Q. With the Avalanche in 3rd place in the West right now, what are you looking forward to going forward this season?
A. As you know our success this year is a shock to everyone. I think Anderson and Coach Joe have been good additions to the team. I hope we can stick it out for the whole season and do well in the playoffs. We just have to keep doing what we are doing.
Q. You haven’t gotten to play much this season, but when you have, you’ve put together good numbers. How did you train this past off-season?
A. I played more tennis this summer; maybe that’s what did it! I practiced like we do during the season – 3 hard days of work and 2 easy. (It’s) just I don’t play games in the off-season besides tennis and maybe a little golf.
Q. You’re an unrestricted free agent this year, are you looking ahead at what might happen?
A. Yes, I would like to stay in Denver but I will be happy if I have to go to another team as long as I am a part of a team and can play. Even if I am a back-up.

I would like to thank Peter again for taking the time out of his day to answer a few questions and I wish him, the Colorado Avalanche, and the Slovakian Olympic team the best of luck this year (unless you’re playing the Blues or the USA Olympic team)!

I hope you all enjoyed this as much as I did.

Randall Ritchey

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Throwdown Lowdown – Blues @ Canadiens 1-20-10

By Tyler Atwood on January 20, 2010

Does this really look like the face of an enforcer? Well, it is! Image via nhl.com

Does this really look like the face of an enforcer? Well, it is! Image via nhl.com

Before we begin, another awesome video . . . this one is courtesy of the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks hockey team, and you may have caught this elsewhere, but it’s good enough to view over and over again.  Two years ago, their CGI intro video turned heads because the polar bear (Nanook, if you don’t know, is Inuit for “polar bear”) destroyed Anchorage while making a dead sprint toward Fairbanks with a hockey stick.  THAT video can be found here.  This time?  WORLD EXPLOSION!!!!! Do not mess with the University of Alaska-Fairbanks hockey team, apparently.

No fights happened on Monday with the Blue Jackets.  I don’t know who else would agree, but it seemed the Blues weren’t as physical on Monday as they had been since Davis (Earl of) Payne’s arrival.  Physicality is what this team is based on and built for, so hopefully that changes.  The Blues’ 40 fights dropped them to 5th place in the league, and lurking behind them is a massive three-way tie for sixth between Edmonton, Colorado and Vancouver – all with 39 fights on the season.

The Montreal Canadiens hold one of the lower fight totals in the league at 22, and to show for it they are an underwhelming 6-8-8 on the season, according to Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights.  But what Les Habitants lack in number of fights is made up for in number of contestants – 13 of them to be exact.  At the top of the list is Montreal native and bruising forward Georges Laraque (6′4″, 245lbs, 2-1-1).  Laraque has taken some heat this year for not carrying out his tough-guy image as well as he has done in the past, but don’t let anyone fool you: he’s still this hockey team’s enforcer, and he is a large human being on skates.  That combination is always spooky.  Other fighters to look forward to could be former Duck and Shark winger Travis Moen (6′2″, 215lbs, 1-1-2) and defenseman Paul Mara (6′2″, 207lbs, 2-0-0).  Among the 10 other Habs to have fought this year, only six of them are on the current roster.  Of the other four, two of them are currently in the minors (Gregory Stewart and Ryan White), one was traded away (Kyle Chipchura, to Anaheim and previously covered in this report) and one was claimed off waivers (Jay Leach, by San Jose).

After having the winning streak snapped in Columbus and after a surprising lack of the same jump found during the winning streak, it may be a perfect time for Cam Janssen to be reinserted into the lineup.  If that’s the case, your dream fight matchup of the evening is Janssen and Laraque, for many obvious reasons.  If there’s no Cam, there probably will be no fights as “secondary” fighters like BJ Crombeen and Brad Winchester have seemed to shy away from fisticuffs recently.  And while you’d think a team named the Canadiens would have at least one Team Canada hockey player on the Olympic squad for David Backes to challenge, in this case there is no such luck.

Remember last season when the Blues did so awesome against the Eastern Conference?  It was one of many keys to the late-season playoff push, and yeah, that’d be nice to rekindle again . . . so let’s start with a win in Montreal tonight!

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights.

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Recap 12-07-09: Blue vs. Avalanche

By Jeff Quirin on December 8, 2009

I really don’t even know where to begin. I have never seen a team work so hard at times only to be completely out worked less than five minutes later. The Blues play on Scottrade Ice is deplorable, despicable, and certainly lacking pride and enthusiasm.

As I watched Stewart’s first goal go in (and silent say yay since he is on my Keeper team) I really saw a flashback to the Pens game a few days again against Colorado. In the final 15 or so seconds of the first the Pens put out Malkin , Crosby, and Rupp. Those three combined to break up Colorado’s play and turn it up ice, resulting in a Crosby goal with about 10 seconds left in the period. The Pens went on to win 4-1 that night.

Colorado paid it forward tonight and pass it to the Blues. With less than 20 second left in the first period the Blues lost an important defensive zone faceoff. John Michael Liles quickly got the puck over to Kyle Quincey and in one motion he received the pass and made the shot. Chris Stewart was right in front for the tip. Bang-Bang play and its 1-0 with seconds left in the first. From that point on Colorado would really clamp down the game. There were parts of the second in which the Blues took it to Colorado, but Colorado answered every time.The Blues did their trademark 110% effort in the third, only to fall short of a comeback. When I hear Darren pang say “no lead is safe”, I comment back to the TV “unless you are playing the Blues”.

There were several key issues that really hampered the Blues.

1. Indecisiveness with the puck
- There were several times tonight where the Blues seemed to have no clue what they wanted to do in the offensive zone. Brad Boyes, David Perron and Erik Johnson seemed to be the worst. Perron would over “dangle”, Boyes looked clueless, and Erik Johnson cannot get a shot off quickly to save his soul. Players were getting in to position to get the puck on net and either passing or moving too much. Did they not pick up on how Colorado scored their goals? Get the puck and get it on net. Indecision lead to an insane number of blocked shots for the Avs, 20 total for the game.

2. Mental mistakes
- The Blues had generally done a solid job of backing up the man pinching, till tonight. Multiple times Blues forwards were changing instead of backing up the play. The biggest snafu was on Paul Kariya going off which lead to the 2-on-1 that lead to the Paul Stastny goal. That is a basic team play, backing up a player removed from his normal position. Where was the “team” element tonight? I saw 3 individuals in the offensive zone on each line tonight. Lack of support working for pucks on the boards was a major sticking point for me. This game could have been the home opener or any home game. The Blues were out worked and the opposition shut off the walls and slot. That creates a lot of blocks. The Blues also returned to jamming the puck down deep in to tight spaces. Why make plays when there is no room? Mental breakdown.

3. Pelt the wall
- My soccer team in high school had a saying about free kicks close to the net. The first one of the game needs to be straight in to the wall. Why? You back up the wall and you have more room to work. While it’s nice in soccer, you don’t want to do that in hockey. The 20 blocks for Colorado is just way too much. So if you aren’t pelting the wall, you are trying to lift it over. The Blues would have been on point if they were a soccer team tonight. Total Missed Shots for the night was 35 according to the ESPN box score. The majority of these appeared to be high and wide. Now in soccer, you can put spin on the ball to swing it wide and bring it back in. You can’t do that in hockey. So missing your target doesn’t work. The bottom line is that shots M-U-S-T be on net. Fore the goalie to do something. If you are trying to pick corners and tight spaces you will cough up the puck in some form or fashion.

Yes teams like San Jose, Washington, Pittsburgh have plays who pick the tight spots. However, 7 or 8 times out of 10, they are making the correct play in their system. They are taking calculated risks. The Blues are just trying to be cute it seems. Being cute doesn’t win hockey games. Being dirty and toothless does. Do the hard work and you will win.

Chris Mason..hard to fault him in this game. The Blues didn’t give up many shots and that makes it hard for any goalie to get in a rhythm. The two Stewart goals were deflections, not much he can do there. In my opinion the second goal (Stastny’s) was all on Kariya (which we covered) and David Backes. Backes came charging in to hit Wolski, only to run him in to Mason and leave the puck sitting for Stastny. Backes is a more defensibly responsible player than that, at least most of the time.

Players
Brad Winchester – Not sure what he did to warrant less ice time as the game went on, but he was solid in the first.

TJ Oshie, David Perron, Erik Johnson – All three were “OK” individually, but below average in terms of team play. I saw some rumoring online about TJ Oshie’s mental and physical condition during this game. Let’s just say I call BS on that.

Patrik Berglund – He keeps building on his good games from the last two or three. He was effective early on in taking it to the net and using his body in the offensive zone. The last three games have looked more like 2008, early 2009 Berglund than 09-10 Berglund.

Roman Polak and Barret Jackman – No where near as good as they were against LA and SJ, but then again there wasn’t much time spent in the Blues zone for them to really have to shut anyone down. All of Colorado’s goals were quickies.

Mike Weaver – Continues to be steady, but a massive liability in the offensive zone. He just cannot make a play.

Paul Kariya – Technically EVEN for the night, he deserves a Minus-1 for the Stastny goal. His play was good save for that one mental lapse.

McSteenbeen – Generally lacking impact. Just didn’t notice them much.

Andy McDonald – The little engine that could, but isn’t. Can’t fault the guy he is working hard to create space and chances, just no one can finish that he is playing with.

Should Cam Janssen have dressed to tangle with David Koci? Worth bringing up since the Blues seem to respond well to fights on home ice.

Kudos need to go to Colorado. They played the typical road game…like some many others have in Scottrade. Colorado is for real as long as they keep working. Stewart is finally catching on, Stastny has serious ability, Wolski is catching on playing with younger guys. There main line right now is just outworking other teams for chances. Throw in the big bodies they have down the line up, they can run with you, hammer on the boards with you, and throw more skill at you with Duchene, Hejduk, and Svatos.

Peter Budaj did a good job of eliminating second chances. Mainly because the only shots going through were straight on him or in areas he had covered. Any NHL goalie is capable of beating any team. Budaj is playing pretty well and is getting A LOT of support from his team. Something the Blues should be familiar with from last season.

Where do we go from here? Well, the Blues fly to Detroit to face the Red Wings on Wednesday for the fourth time this season. Those are not encouraging words.

Player of the Game

Chris Stewart

Chris Stewart

Stewart lead the Avs with two goals and an assist Monday night to defeat the Blues 4-0.

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