The Blues are back at home tonight for a back-to-back weekend.  Kris Russell is out tonight with the flu.  The Blues have recalled Ian Cole to take his spot, as Kent Huskins is not ready to get back in the lineup yet.  Although close, Andy McDonald will not make his comeback tonight, but the Blues beat writers have said to expect to see him tomorrow.  The Blues have also placed Jason Arnott on Injured Reserve; this is likely to free up some roster space in case McDonald is ready for action before Arnott is.  No new reports have come out on Matt D’Agostini or Alex Steen.  D’Agostini still remains listed as day-to-day and did not skate on Friday.  Steen is still on IR with concussion symptoms. Look for Brian Elliott to start tonight for the Blues, with Jaroslav Halak taking tomorrow’s game in this back-to-back set.

The Avalanche are coming off a home win on Friday night against the Carolina Hurricanes, and they took yesterday off.  For their projected lineup, see Lou Korac’s In the Slot from today.

Game Info:

Location: St. Louis

Opposing Netminder: Semyon Varlamov (per Daily Faceoff)

Expected Line Combos: (per Lou Korac)

Perron – Backes – Oshie
Grachev – Berglund – Stewart
Porter – Sobotka – Langenbrunner
Crombeen – Nichol – Reaves

Colaiacovo – Pietrangelo
Jackman – Shattenkirk
Cole – Polak

This takes some concentration, actually. Cody McLeod, kids. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

Good teams find ways to win like the St. Louis Blues found a way to beat the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. And not only that, the deed was done in the dastardly SHOOTOUT portion of the contest! Yes, the Blues actually won a shootout! 4-3 was the official final score. Despite the fact that Cam Janssen was buzzing around the team he used to root for AND play for, there were no fights in the contest, which may be just as well, actually. The Blues now sit in an 11th place tie with the Buffalo Sabres with 26 fighting majors each on the National Hockey League season. The team’s fight record still holds at 12-3-11.

Home sweet home! The Blues now play host to one of the league’s weirdest teams to put a proper gauge on, the Colorado Avalanche. They’re young, sure, but they have enough skilled players in all three zones to be better than they actually are. Lately, save for one game back in January, the Avs have had the Blues’ number. This is the last of four meetings between the Blues and Avs this season (barring a playoff series, I suppose), so we have covered this team three previous times (December 2nd, December 21st and January 7th). The Avs are shockingly similar to the Blues fighting-wise, in that there is one main fighter and some secondary fighters mixed in there. The Avs are currently tied for 14th in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks with 24 fighting majors collected on the season. Their fight record is a bit on the downside, though, at 5-8-11.

The Avs are led in fights by Cody McLeod (6’2”, 210lbs, 3-3-5) with 11 fights on the season, which is currently good for a top-ten place among the NHL’s individual fight leaders. Following him is former Predator and Canuck Shane O’Brien (6’3”, 230lbs, 2-0-1) with three fights. Ryan Wilson (6’1”, 207lbs, 0-0-2), David Jones (6’2”, 210lbs, 0-2-0) and Daniel Winnik (6’2”, 210lbs, 0-0-2) each have fought twice. Four Avs players have fought once each, they are former Blue and golf cart driving extraordinaire, Erik Johnson (6’4”, 232lbs, Draw), TJ Galiardi (6’2”, 190lbs, Draw), Chuck Kobasew (6’0”, 192lbs, Draw) and Ryan O’Byrne (6’5”, 234lbs, Loss).

I’ve always said McLeod is very similar in fighting style and playing style to BJ Crombeen, and for once I’d really like to see the two mix it up with each other, because I don’t recall the two ever fighting each other. It might be the most even fight in the history of ever.

Home action means home wins, right? Well, I hope so, anyway.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

Steve Ott has an ‘A’ on his sweater, and I always imagine it stands for “A**hole”. Image via ladybugbkt/Flickr

The St. Louis Blues can win a game in the shootout? Holy crap! And so it was done on Saturday, as the Blues played the Minnesota Wild to a 2-2 tie in regulation and a scoreless five-minute overtime period, and took the victory in a shootout, most undoubtedly the single dumbest way I can think of ending a hockey contest (JUST END IT IN A TIE). The great news, aside from the win, in this one is that there were three (!) fights in this game. For starters, David Backes earned 19 minutes of penalties in sticking up for David Perron on what turned out to be a clean hit, “fighting” Justin Falk to a draw (video here, and this situation is exactly why the Instigator Rule is a load of crap). Then, rather inexplicably, Clayton Stoner went at it with Chris Stewart, with Stewart taking the win (video here). Finally, in what has to be the Blues’ fight of the year so far, Ryan Reaves and Brad Staubitz squared off in what I thought was a pretty excellent fight, a fight that displayed all the reasons why fighting should never be taken out of the game (A BIT OF NSFW LANGUAGE IN THIS LINK). Somehow, a decision was rendered in this fight, and it was given to Reaves (video here, and if you don’t like what you see, I’m sorry . . . but you are not a fan of hockey fights).With these three fights to add to the total, the Blues ratchet up to a tie for 11th place in the National Hockey League with the Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames and Pittsburgh Penguins, who each have collected 20 fighting majors on the season. The fight record, with the two wins and the draw added, now goes up to 9-2-9.

We now welcome to town former Norris Division mate and possible future division or conference mate, the Dallas Stars. You might recall that the Stars did pay a visit recently. The Blues and Stars have played one in Dallas (October 13th) and one in St. Louis (December 26th) this season. As you can see by the date, the St. Louis meeting was very recent, and some foul happenings took place in that game. It was also a close contest that was won by the Blues, one of very few the Blues seem to have won over the Stars recently. Is it an indicator of what is to come tonight? Probably not, as momentum is usually only as good as your next game. The Stars have fought 18 times this season, currently good for a tie for 16th in the NHL with the Colorado Avalanche and the Florida Panthers. The Stars’ fight record is not bad – a solid 5-4-9.

The Stars are led in fights by former Blackhawk Jake Dowell (6’0”, 198lbs, 1-2-2) with five fights. Following him is well-known pest and one of my least-favorite players ever, Steve Ott (6’0”, 190lbs, 1-0-3, including a “victory” over Barret Jackman), who has fought four times this season. Then, there’s Krys Barch (6’1”, 237lbs, 1-1-1 as a Star and 2-3-3 overall, traded to the Panthers on December 7th) with three fights as a Star. Team Captain Brenden Morrow (6’0”, 205lbs, 1-0-1) has fought twice. Among solo fighters for the Stars are future superstar Jamie Benn (6’2”, 205lbs, Win), veteran defenseman Sheldon Souray (6’4”, 237lbs, Draw with Stewart), hulking defenseman Mark Fistric (6’2”, 233lbs, Draw) and a son of former Islanders royalty, Eric Nystrom (6’1”, 193lbs, Loss).

These two teams have a recent past of brawling each other, and with the kind of fight matchups that happened in the first two meetings of the two teams, I would not be shocked at anything at this point. For posturing purposes, my pick for the night will be Dowell and Reaves, but don’t bet on it . . . bet on something else (ANYTHING else).

Two home wins in a row? As long as it doesn’t go to overtime, I’m cool.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

Clayton Stoner says “I WILL FIGHT EVERY DAMN ONE OF YOU!” Image via rburtzel/Flickr

To continue my remembrance of when the St. Louis Blues sucked at hockey back in the middle to late ‘00’s, back then a 3-2 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks would not have been viewed as a disappointment. Now? It is a disappointment, which is a good sign of where this club is headed going forward. As for fights . . . there were two. First, BJ Crombeen and Dale Weise worked a draw (video here, and might I add that Beej made the RIGHT decision to let up on Weise after he slipped . . . I wish more fighters would do that). Then, Roman Polak went into “Berserk Mode” and wailed fists all over Maxim Lapierre for a victory (video here). Despite the two fights, the Blues stay at 18th place in the National Hockey League, albeit by themselves, with 17 fighting majors on the season. The fight record, with the draw and the win, now goes up to 7-2-8.

So hey, now we get a home game with another Western Conference playoff candidate in the Minnesota Wild. We have covered these folks twice, both for road contests (November 5th and November 19th). While this team, like the Blues, is not in the upper echelon of fighting teams, they are not afraid to drop the gloves and go at it. This is not to say that it will happen tonight, but there is a bit of a recent history between the two clubs. The Wild are tied for 13th in the NHL with the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers and Winnipeg Jets, who each have collected 18 fighting majors on the season. Their fight record stands at a stout 9-5-4.

The Wild are led in fights, unsurprisingly, by Brad Staubitz (6’1”, 215lbs, 4-2-2) with eight of the team’s 18 fights. Following him are young Twitter fiend Matt Kassian (6’4”, 232lbs, 2-0-1, currently with Houston in the AHL, follow him here) and big defenseman Clayton Stoner (6’3”, 225lbs, 2-1-0), each with three fights. The rest of the Wild players on this list have fought once each, and they are Justin Falk (6’5”, 215lbs, Win), Darroll Powe (Draw with Scott Nichol), Nick Johnson (6’1”, 183lbs, Loss) and Warren Peters (6’0”, 195lbs, Loss).

You never know . . . Nichol and Powe could go at it again with one another. But what I really want to see is a fight between Stoner and Ryan Reaves. That would be perfect . . . two heavyweights, going fist-for-fist. I would love it.

It’s time to get the bus back on the road and win some more hockey games, starting tonight.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

(24-12-5)

vs

Montreal Canadiens

(16-18-7)

at

Bell Centre

Game Time 6:30pm CDT

TV- FS-MW(HD) Radio- KMOX

Blues Team Recap- The St. Louis Blues are coming off an impressive 4-0 beat down of their kryptonite foes the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night. With a record of 1-8-1 in the last 10 games against the Avs, it was good to finally see the good guys lay down a full 60 minute effort and make the most of their opportunities. The Blues sit tied for first place in the central division with the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings at 53 points. It has been more the 9 years since the Blues sat at the top of the Division. A long long 9 years it has been since the fans in St. Louis could open up the Post-Dispatch glance down at the standings section of the sports page and go “Whoa… Our Blues are in first!” It has been a rough and bumpy ride to get to where we are today. I for one hope and pray that the Blues continue to put forward max effort and keep this team near the top. The Blues stroll in to Montreal tonight to take on a team that has not been able to get things going. My advice to the production crews wearing the blue note, try to avoid the protesting mobs that are ticked about a non-French speaking coach.

Blues Keys To The Game- When you go up against teams that are having down years the last thing you want to do is allow them to gain any confidence. The Blues can not afford to go into Montreal and take the Canadiens lightly. The atmosphere in Bell Centre will be electric as it is every time the home town Canadiens hit the ice. Tonight will be an extra special night as Jaroslav Halak takes the ice for the first time as a member of the opposition when the puck drops at 6:30 tonight.  Halak was responsible for helping the Canadiens on their post season run toward the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010, coming up one game short of the big dance.  The Blues need to continue to put lots of traffic in front of the net and continue to funnel pucks toward the net minder. The Power Play has found new life taking a shot first mentality into consideration instead of trying to pull “Datsyuk-ian” type moves and dangles from the stars. Will the Blues be able to clear the glitz and glamor of playing in one of hockey’s prestige palaces? Tonight we will see how the show on the road matches up.

Montreal Canadians Team Recap- Troubled times in Montreal are looming. With a record of 16-18-7, the Canadiens sit a sad 12th in the Eastern Conference. With the hiring of non-French speaking coach Randy Cunneyworth, the atmosphere in Montreal appears to be that of great desperation and despair. With the fans threatening to protest the non-French speaking coach, the winter days are long and the cold blustery nights are even longer. The Canadiens need to find a way to have success for a full 60 minutes. Whether they are getting blown out or shot down by one goal, this team has lost its way and its identity. It will be interesting to see if any more changes occur as we near the trade deadline and Montreal becomes a possible “sell” team rather then becoming a “buyer.”

Montreal Canadians Keys To The Game- It may seem like a broken record game in and game out, but if you want to beat St. Louis there are some key things that you must accomplish. Number one- You have to get in St. Louis’ face with physical pressure. You cannot allow them to freely transition the puck out of their defensive zone and get the puck moving north. The Blues are one of the best teams at getting the puck out of their own zone and getting the play moving in the right direction. The next key component to beating the Blues is to get them to take bad penalties by out working them along the boards. Put traffic in front of Halak on the Power Play and you will find tips and opportunities to get a few quick goals. Third Key- Never ever ever ever let your foot up off of the gas when you get St. Louis down a goal or two. Look back to the recent game the Blues played against the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers had the Blues down 3-1 and the Blues stormed back and beat them 4-3 in regulation. If the Canadiens want to steal away two important points for the Blues they will need a maximum home town effort tonight when the High Flying Blues come calling.

Blues News- The ownership saga remains in limbo as Tom Stillman is rumored to be putting together his next offer for the team. The NHL shot down Matthew Hulsizers attempts to buy the Blues after it was said he put together three different finance options. Time will tell if it was a wise decision by the league to cut the legs out from under Matthew Hulsizer or will they look like kings when Stillman and crew take control in St. Louis. Defenseman Kent Huskins continues to skate with the team in practice. No time table has been set for his return but one could speculate that a mid to late January return is possible for the veteran Defenseman who lead the team in goals and assists at one point early in the season. Forward Alex Steen is also progressing toward a return to the team. Again it has been rumored amongst the twitterverse that Steen is feeling better and may be able to get back to practicing in the near future. Andy McDonald also continues to improve coming back from post concussion syndrome. Gaining Steen and McDonald back in the line up will be like making a trade. A healthy Andy McDonald and Alex Steen add a level of play and skill to your line up that will make it that much harder for teams to compete against the Blues. Ian Cole will be available tonight as he has served his three game suspension for his “Illegal Hit To The Head” on the Red Wings Justin Abdelkader, a hit in which Cole miss timed his body position not trying to injure or make a dirty hit and earned a three game suspension from the NHL Player Safety director Brendan Shanahan. Look for a post regarding this mockery of a disciplinarian coming soon to BNZ as I look to call in to question the validity and down right favoritism shown in the leagues discipline today.

Grab your snacks and those tasty adult beverages and get up off your couches St. Louis! It’s time for BLUEEEEEEEEESSSSS HOCKKKKEEYYYYY! LET’S GO BLUES!

When Travis Moen is your best fighter and he hasn’t won any fights, that’s not a good signal of your team’s toughness. Image via clydeorama/Flickr

Total domination . . . that was what the St. Louis Blues displayed in a 4-0 shellacking of the visiting Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night. The only bad part of that game was that while there were some moments of testiness in the battle – especially between Cody McLeod and, fresh off his Injured Reserve stint, Ryan Reaves – there were no fighting majors assessed. But hey, I’ll take the victory. The Note stays at 15 fighting majors on the season, still good for 18th spot all alone in the National Hockey League in that category. And yes, the fight record still stands at 6-2-7.

Hello, one-game road trip! And at that, it’s a visit to one of professional hockey’s most storied franchises . . . Les Habitants de Montreal, or – in English (as Randy Cunneyworth prefers . . . harf harf harf!) – the Montreal Canadiens. Despite a hot performance which included a four-goal game (and first-ever hat trick) by former Blues prospect Lars Eller, the Habs have been on a downward slide pretty much the entire season. I would not let this fool the Blues, though, as it could be a perfect trap game. However, with Jaroslav Halak (who, ironically, was the return for the trade package that included Eller) playing for the first time in Montreal since being traded by them after an outstanding 2009-2010 playoff run, anything is possible. However, it is wise not to expect a fight in this contest, as the Habs are tied for 28th in the NHL with the Phoenix Coyotes with eight fighting majors on the season. Their record in those fights is a less-than-satisfactory 0-3-5.

How little do the Habs fight? They are led in fights by two people who have two fights each, and neither is particularly known for fisticuffs – Travis Moen (6’2”, 215lbs, 0-0-2) and Petteri Nokelainen (6’1”, 202lbs, 0-1-1). The rest are solo fighters, and they are Mike Blunden (6’4”, 218lbs, Draw), Max Pacioretty (6’2”, 196lbs, Draw), young up-and-coming defenseman (and one of my personal favorites) PK Subban (6’0”, 206lbs, Loss) and the incredibly tall Hal Gill (6’7”, 241lbs, Loss).

As noted earlier, I do not anticipate there being a fight between these two teams, but with all the trading that has happened with the two clubs in the last few years, maybe I will be wrong. If you’re betting on anything to happen, bet on Moen going at it with BJ Crombeen, but don’t bet the house on it.

I would much prefer the Blues continue this winning streak. Wouldn’t you?

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

(23-18-1)

vs

St. Louis Blues

(23-12-5)

at

Scottrade Center

Game Time 7:00 pm CDT

TV-FS-MW(HD) Radio- KMOX

Blues Team Recap – The St. Louis Blues are coming off a 4-3 come from behind victory against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night at Scottrade Center. A game which saw more terrible officiating by the leagues group of misfit referees. Blues defenseman Roman Polak received a 5 minute major for slashing and a game misconduct when his stick came around inadvertently as he spun in the defensive zone catching an Oilers player along side the head. Roman had no intention of slashing the player and should have had better control of his stick. That being said, there is no way in hell he should have been assessed the severity of a penalty as he was. It is the ongoing frustration caused by inconsistent, terrible, just horrible officiating. The league is kidding itself if it thinks fans are not noticing this epidemic league wide. Is it to much to ask for a well reffed game these days? The Blues will look tonight to continue its way forward when the Colorado Avalanche come calling at Scottrade. The Avalanche have been a hot team as of late and the task of putting them in there place will be a tough one.

Blues Keys To The Game - For the love of god stay out of the penalty box. The Blues need to play a much improved discipline game when they take on Colorado tonight. Spending 11 of 20 minutes in the penalty box in the second period of the game against the Oilers came very close to sealing the deal against the Blues. At even strength the Blues own one of the best records in hockey. The power play has climbed its way out of the basement from 30th to 24th in the League. The Note need to get back to their defensively sounds hockey with quick transitional play. When the Blues get away from their game plan things seem to go wrong in a hurry. Add in some very questionable officiating and it can become a wild night on the ice. The League has a responsibility to its fans and to its players to put people on the ice that can consistently officiate games in a way that does not constantly call their abilities into question. Strong on the puck with dominate control will help the Blues squelch a climbing Avs team. Early goals will help get the crowd into the action which is like the 7th man on the ice for the home team.

Colorado Team Recap -   The Avalanche are soaring high after an abysmal start to the season. The Avalanche are 9-1 in their last 10 games and sit 8th in the Western Conference with 47 points. Colorado has managed to figure out to play as a team and never quit on games. Add in some very solid goal tending by Semeyon Varlomov and you get a recipe for success for the Avalanche. With one of the youngest line ups in the league, Colorado will look to bring its game into St. Louis tonight and continue on their winnig ways. Going up against a team with the best home record in the NHL the Avs will have a very challenging game to play tonight when the puck drops.

Colorado Avalanche Keys To The Game - Get the Blues to take bad penalties seems to be the key for success. When you want to get underneath the skin of a team that is usually very disciplined and tough defensively the best thing they can do is goad them into taking dumb penalties. The Avs can accomplish this task by getting the puck in deep on the Blues and working hard for puck battles along the boards. If they press the Blues and get them to start skating in circles in their own zone they tend to open up allowing through he seam passes that usually end up in the back of the net. If they allow St. Louis to control the flow of the game and engage their physical forechecking game it will be a very long and painful night.

Starting Goalies and Lineups – Per Lou Korac’s Gameday blog the Blues will start former Avs netminder Brian Elliott and Colorado will counter with Jean-Sebastien Giguere. Also per Korac the lines are expected to remain the same for the Note with the exception of Ryan Reaves potentially replacing Chris Porter. Evgeny Grachev will likely be scratched.

David Perron – David Backes – Chris Stewart
Matt D’Agostini – Patrik Berglund – T.J. Oshie
Vladimir Sobotka – Jason Arnott – Jamie Langenbrunner
Ryan Reaves – Scott Nichol – B.J. Crombeen

Carlo Colaiacovo – Alex Pietrangelo
Barret Jackman – Kevin Shattenkirk
Cade Fairchild – Roman Polak

Blues News: Injury Updates and Otherwise – Blues Defensman Kent Huskins has begun skating again for the first time since injuring his ankle back against the Flames back in October. No time table has been set for his return but skating is the first step in getting the veteran back into the line up. Fellow blueliner Ian Cole remains out of the lineup while serving a three game suspension for his hit on Justin Abdelkader. Kris Russell continues to recover from a hip/groin injury.

Forward Andy McDonald continues to skate with the team in practice. Andy is recovering from a concussion he suffered when David Backes accidentally hit Andy in the head during a scuffle on the ice. Blues forward and tough guy Ryan Reavevs has been cleared to play and will be available for tonight’s game against Colorado should he be called upon. Ryan was a healthy scratch in the game against the Oilers on Thursday night. Alex Steen will miss tonight’s game with concussion like symptoms.

The future of the franchise still hangs in the balance as the league terminated the purchase agreement between Chicago Businessman Matthew Hulsizer and current principal owner Dave Checketts. Now St. Louis Businessman and current minority owner Tom Stillman will have a chance to prove he has the backing to get a deal completed. Stay tuned for the latest in Blues team sale information to come.

- – -

Tonight will be a test to see if the Blues can handle a very hot and talented Colorado squad. Get up and get loud people! LET’S GO BLUES!

Ryan O’Byrne (3) is tall. Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

What a rally! The St. Louis Blues have proven to be a never-say-die team under Ken Hitchcock, and they proved it again by rallying from a 3-1 deficit after a HORRIBLE second period to win 4-3 over the Edmonton Oilers with a flurry of goals to begin the third period. The only bad part about all this was the lack of a fight. This was only a touch disheartening, considering how the action was going in this game and the fact that the game flow and action nearly dictated that a fight was to happen. Oh well, I guess I’ll survive . . . . Anyway, the Blues stick and stay at 15 fights on the season, which now gives the squad 18th spot all alone in the National Hockey League. And they remain at a nice 6-2-7 fight record. Hey, when your team plays well, your team generally does not have to fight as often. I get that. So I’m cool with it.

The last game of THIS home stand (but only the third home game of the month out of a total of nine) brings Denver’s hockey team to town . . . yes, the Colorado Avalanche. We’ve covered the Avs twice this season, both prior to road losses to that team (December 2nd and December 21st). The Avs are not allergic to fisticuffs, but they seem to do it just about as often as the Blues do this season, which is to say “not that much”. Also of note . . . the Avs are coming off a road game in Chicago, so it’s possible they may not be in the mood to fight anyone tonight. But I digress . . . the Avs are tied for 10th in the NHL with the Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild with 18 fighting majors collected on the season. Their fight record is a very respectable 5-5-8 on the season.

The Avs are led in fights by a familiar face around these parts, fighter extraordinaire Cody McLeod (6’2”, 210lbs, 3-2-2) with seven fights on the season. Following him is former Predator and Canuck Shane O’Brien (6’3”, 230lbs, 2-0-1) with three fights. Ryan Wilson (6’1”, 207lbs, 0-0-2, on IR with a head injury) and David Jones (6’2”, 210lbs, 0-2-0) each have fought twice. Three Avs players have fought once each, they are former Blue and golf cart driving extraordinaire, Erik Johnson (6’4”, 232lbs, Draw), fresh figher TJ Galiardi (6’2”, 190lbs, Draw), Ryan O’Byrne (6’5”, 234lbs, Loss) and Daniel Winnik (6’2”, 210lbs, Loss).

Since there were no fights in the first two contests between these two teams, plus this being the second of a back-to-back set for the Avs, I will not predict a fight, and it’s possible that there will be no fights tonight. But that’s not what I want! I want BLOOD! That said, in four games last year, the two teams fought somewhere around 10 times, and there was big trade between the two clubs less than a year ago. Anything is possible. For your best bet, go with McLeod and BJ Crombeen.

Let’s continue this winning streak, why don’t we?

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

“Why won’t Coach Babs let us fight, Drew?” “Because we suck at it, Justin.” Image via BridgetDS/Flickr

Obviously this 2011-2012 St. Louis Blues team did not want to keep remembering the ass-kickings they took at the hands of the Dallas Stars last season and early in this one, earning a hard-fought 5-3 victory over their former division-mate and soon-to-be conference-mate. There was a fight in this game, and as I was suspecting, Steve Ott got himself involved. He has a tendency to rile up whoever happens to be the “Whipping Boy” defenseman in St. Louis. So yes, he got into it with Barret Jackman this time. I happened to be in attendance, and watching this one develop was quite interesting, to say the least. And in this instance, it almost led to a second fight, which was pretty fun (check the video of the whole incident here). As an added bonus, it was on national television! So now, many more hockey fans than before know about how much of a jerk Ott is. The fight itself was relatively weak, as after Ott got up from Jackman taking him down a second time and after Jackman face-washed Ott, Ott punched Jackman WHILE HIS GLOVE WAS STILL ON (a douche move), then after shedding the gloves he got a couple rights in, after which the two hugged it out and fell on the ice. Somehow, this was not voted a draw – instead, Ott was declared a winner. I have a feeling that result may change, but nonetheless . . . the Blues move up to 14 fights on the season, good for a tie for 15th in the National Hockey League with the Colorado Avalanche, Winnipeg Jets and last night’s opponent in that category. With the loss, the team’s fight record “slides” to 5-2-7.

Now, the Blues take their first trip to Joe Louis Arena on the season, not to mention their first of two trips to that arena in less than a week. Yes, it’s our old “friends”, the Detroit Red Wings! I’ve spoken twice about these folks this season, both for home contests (November 15th and December 6th, to be exact). There really isn’t much to say about the Wings that you don’t already know. They don’t drop the gloves as often as any other team in the league, and they are rarely baited into a fight. You can’t go into a Red Wings game thinking there WILL be a fight, actually. The Wings are currently all by themselves, DEAD LAST in the NHL with four fighting majors collected on the no-longer-young 2011-2012 season. To put this in perspective . . . coming into tonight’s game, there are 39 NHL players who have fought four or more times – 26 of those players have fought five or more times (including our own Ryan Reaves, who has fought five times), and seven of THOSE players have fought at least eight times, or DOUBLE the amount of fights the Red Wings have been part of as a team. That’s incredibly hard to accomplish as a team, if you ask me. Anyway, in these fights, the Wings have gone 2-2-0, which I guess is not horrible.

Of those four fights, Justin Abdelkader (6’1”, 219lbs, 1-1-0) has taken part in two of them. The other two were battled by Jonathan Ericsson (6’4”, 221lbs, Win) and youngster Jakub Kindl (6’3”, 216lbs, Loss). So obviously, there is not much to sift through when talking about fights with the Red Wings.

And as you could guess, I do not anticipate there being any more fights to add to the list tonight. Sorry!

Great news on the fisticuffs front for the Blues . . . third-line grinder BJ Crombeen, who tied for the team lead in fighting majors in the 2010-2011 season, returns to the lineup tonight after missing the first 35 games of THIS season due to a broken scapula suffered in the preseason. Former Blues pugilist and current Blues radio color commentator Kelly Chase broke the news on Twitter this morning. While he’s not the most skilled player on the team, his return adds a definite grit factor to the team and adds to the surplus of forwards the Blues have been accumulating since players have been coming off Injured Reserve with their injuries. Also, I love the way this guy plays, and many partial Blues observers also have taken a liking to him as he displays a hard-nosed style to his game. A further report on BJ’s return is upcoming on The BlueNote Zone.

The Blues have won both games against the Red Wings this year. Can they make it a third? Please, let this happen.

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights

What else is there to say about Paul Bissonnette? Image via clydeorama/Flickr

Well, I didn’t think it was a goal. They reviewed it, though, and apparently the call on the ice is that it WAS a goal and that there was no conclusive evidence to overturn it. That goal by old friend “Silent Jay” McClement ended up the game-winner for the Colorado Avalanche in a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday night. A shame? Maybe. But, it’s just one game out of 82, so this is no time to jump off bridges or anything. There were no fighting majors recorded by either team in the contest, so the Blues stay at 13 fights on the season, good for a tie for 16th with the Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets in that category. The fight record stays at 5-1-7.

Now to the desert, where we find the Phoenix Coyotes in a tie for their division lead, but with fewer points than the Blues. You would think that a team that employs Paul Bissonnette would have plenty of fights under their belts, but in this case, the Yotes are actually tied for 27th with the Tampa Bay Lightning with seven fighting majors collected on the season. And unfortunately, they have been relatively mediocre in those fights, sporting a fight record of 1-2-4.

You would also think that the Coyotes would be led in fighting majors by Bissonnette, but again, you would be wrong. Actually, veteran journeyman brawler Kyle Chipchura (6’2”, 203lbs, 1-1-1) leads the team with three of those seven fights. Following him is veteran agitator Raffi Torres (6’0”, 208lbs, 0-0-2) with two fights. The other two fights were contested by The Most Awesome Twitter Follow In Hockey, Bissonnette (6’2”, 216lbs, Draw) and former Blue Jacket Rostislav Klesla (6’3”, 223lbs, Loss), obviously with one each.

So we’re not even sure if BizNasty will even see the ice tonight from anywhere other than the press area, but if he does, I’d love to see him tangle with Ryan Reaves. It would be a very decent fight indeed. Otherwise, Chipchura seems to be up for a fight with just about anyone, and it’s possible HE could mix it up with Reaves. But with as little fighting as these two teams have done this season and considering their positioning in the standings, betting on any fights in this game might be a reach.

To all of my Jewish friends reading this, I hope you have had a wonderful Chanukah. To all of my Christian friends reading this, I hope you have a merry Christmas. To everyone else . . . well, let’s all come together and hope for a Blues victory as a nice holiday gift, shall we?

LET’S GO BLUES!!!!!

Information obtained via the incomparable Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights