This post was originally published at TheHockeyWriters.com.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have learned that the best way to get to the top is to take tidbits from teams that have grown into Cup contenders.

The Jackets did this in a very literal sense.

The central Ohio team traveled south to find an organization to mirror.  The St. Louis Blues, last year’s Central Division Champions, have been the face of rebuilding since the 2004-05 lockout.  After finishing dead-last in 2005-06, the Blues brought in new management, loaded up on draft picks and built a team from the ground up.  In 2012-13, they are heralded as a top NHL team with high Stanley Cup aspirations.

Under the command of owner John P. McConnell, the Blue Jackets have allowed former Blues property to infiltrate every level of the organization.  From the players to the team president, the Blues have had some type of influence on the rebuild of the Blue Jackets.

President – John Davidson

The Blues’ rebuild started with former owner Dave Checketts hiring a new face for the franchise.  With Chris Pronger traded and Al MacInnis retiring the season prior, the Blues seemed to have no identity within the baseball-dominated city.  Davidson, the Hall-of-Fame broadcaster and former Blues goaltender, was brought in to shake up the front office and give the Blues fans someone to believe in.

Davidson made Scottrade Center a more hospitable building to enjoy a hockey game, as the team started offering free food games and more ways to receive discounted tickets.  Under Davidson’s reign, the Blues attendance jumped from 12,520 in 2006-07 (30^th in NHL) to 18,809 in 2011-12 (9^th in NHL). 

The health of the franchise also improved directly under Davidson, as he hired former Stars GM Doug Armstrong as the Vice President of Player Personnel in the summer of 2008.  He then succeeded Larry Pleau as the GM in 2010 and was named the GM of the Year for the 2011-12 season.  Davidson was not finished there, as he also added former Kings great Dave Taylor as the Director of Player Personnel (named last summer as the Vice President of Hockey Operations). 

Some say that the final piece to the Blues’ puzzle was the addition of Head Coach Ken Hitchcock, a former Stanley Cup winner and a well-renowned hockey personality. 

I was at game one of the second round series between the Blues and Kings last May. Coming off a convincing series win over the Sharks, the Blues were now the top seed in the West taking on the number 8 seed Kings. The playoff atmosphere was insane, the crowd was as jacked as any Blues crowd since the perennial playoff years under Joel Quenneville. It was there for the taking.

The Blues got off to a great start, swarming the Kings zone but were thwarted time and again by Jonathan Quick. But the Blues persisted, finally scoring the first goal on a Petro shot through a screen that was tipped by David Perron. The Kings tied it after a Blues give away when Dustin Penner found Slava Voynov sneaking down the backside beating Brian Elliott with a one-timer. The game settled into a tight checking affair just as many pundits had predicted. The Blues got a late second period power play and appeared to be in great position to take a lead.

And then it happened. That moment that changed the game, changed the series. Dwight King boards Alex Pietrangelo. For Blues fans, it was an obvious major penalty. King should have been tossed. Petro laying on the ice, dazed. Unknown at the time, his knee was injured. Incredulous at the lack of a major and game misconduct, the Blues get a five on three and have the opportunity to take the game over. After a brief rest, Petro comes out to quarterback the powerplay. But instead of the Blues

taking advantage, they get blindsided by a five-on-three goal scored by defenseman Matt Greene, who followed an aggressive forecheck by Kings captain Dustin Brown, creating an oddman rush by beating a slowed down Petro down the slot for a virtual empty net goal on a rebound.

This post was originally published at TheHockeyWriters.com.

On Sunday, St. Louis Blues General Manager Doug Armstrong announced that the club placed goaltender Jaroslav Halak on injury reserve.  In turn, the club has called up 22-year old Jake Allen from the Blues’ AHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen.

Halak suffered a cut on his lip after being struck in the mask with a shot Friday night in Detroit, but was not taken out of the game until minutes later at the 16:23 mark of the second period.  The cut does not seem to be the reason for the injury, as the team is calling this a “lower-body injury.”

The Bratislava, Slovakia native has posted a 3-0-0 record this season, recording a .910 save percentage and a .889 GAA while amassing two shutouts.  Halak has appeared in five games this season, as he has twice been relieved in net by the other half of his goalie tandem, Brian Elliott.  The other change in net occurred in the second game of the season in Nashville, after Halak was beaten on a seemingly stoppable Patric Hornqvist power-play goal in the second period.

Allen started this season in a rocky way for the Rivermen, posting a 5-8-4 record in his first 17 games.  But since December 11, Allen has posted a 7-5-1 record with a 2.40 GAA and a .916 save percentage. 

The Blues’ 2008 second round draft selection (34^th overall) has not officially played in an NHL regular season game, but did see a few seconds of action during last year’s playoff.  He did not face a shot. 

This post was originally published at TheHockeyWriters.com.

For as long as any Blues fan can remember, the Detroit Red Wings have been a thorn in the side for their favorite team.  From Steve Yzerman’s overtime killer in Game 7 of the 1996 Western Quarterfinals to being swept in the 2002-03 season series (0-4-1), the Blues have long been on the wrong side of a Red Wing celebration. 

Things may finally be changing.

In the first game of the 2012-13 season, the St. Louis Blues trounced the Red Wings at Scottrade Center, 6-0.  The score may not even speak to how much the Blues controlled the game; Wings goaltenders Jimmy Howard and newcomer Jonas Gustavsson face 36 Blues shots.  St. Louis goaltender Jaroslav Halak, being credited with a shutout, faced just 14 Red Wings shots.  The Blues took it to the Red Wings special teams squads, going 4-5 with the man advantage while killing all four Red Wing power-plays and adding a shorthanded goal from T.J. Oshie.

Four of the Blues’ six goals came with forwards sneaking behind the Wings’ defense, including Oshie’s sixth shorthanded goal of his young career.  He received a stretch pass from defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, who faked a clearing attempt and fed it right on the tape of the streaking forward.  Oshie had a clear breakaway and fired a wrist shot through Howard’s legs at 16:09 of the second period.