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Morning Skate: The Blues are taking advantage of the Central Division’s early season struggles
St. Louis is firing on all cylinders and their lead in the Central is growing.
Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Lace ’em up. Time for the Morning Skate.
Over the last few years, we’ve seen the top dog of the Central Division change hands. The Blackhawks had it for awhile, then the Wild gave them a good run for their money. Now? It firmly belongs to the St. Louis Blues.
You’re not the only ones to be surprised by the Blues this year. Since the start of the season, they’ve gone 12-3-1 and have lost just two of their last eight games. On Tuesday, they held the unusually potent New Jersey Devils to just 22 shots while putting up 40 of their own in a 3-1 victory.
While Central Division heavyweights in the Blackhawks, Wild, and Stars have all struggled to start the season, the Blues are taking every opportunity to bank points for a postseason run. With their talented offense of Vladimir Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz, and newcomer Brayden Schenn — who all scored on Tuesday — the Blues came into this game the NHL’s eighth overall team in goals for.
Plus, goaltender Jake Allen has so far surpassed his 2016-17 season with a .921 save percentage in 13 games played.
Much of the Central Division is struggling to get going in the new year, and the re-tooled Blues are taking advantage with every game won.
One sentence recaps
- Sabres 3, Capitals 1: A late Capitals press was too little, too late as Evander Kane had his third multi-goal game of the season.
- Blues 3, Devils 1: St. Louis kept the Devils to just 22 shots as their offense took care of the rest.
- Oilers 2, Islanders 1 (OT): Jordan Eberle scored against his previous team, but the Oilers prevailed in overtime thanks to, guess who, Connor McDavid.
- Penguins 3, Coyotes 1: The Coyotes gave the Penguins six power play chances, which was six too many.
- Hurricanes 3, Panthers 1: Florida has hit a five-game losing streak despite taking a tied game into the third period.
- Predators 3, Blue Jackets 1: Nashville scored twice in the last six minutes to steal a win in Columbus.
- Canadiens 3, Golden Knights 2: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare has some hands, but the Canadiens ultimately prevailed.
- Canucks 5, Flames 3: Vancouver had five goals on 21 shots on an unlucky Mike Smith in net.
- Kings 4, Ducks 3 (OT): Los Angeles rallied down two goals to win in overtime on Nick Shore’s goal.
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