GDT #52: 2/6/15 | 6:00PM CST | @ Blue Jackets | FSMW/KMOX

[dmiles2186]

God, the previews on the Blues website/NHL.com suck, but at least they're factually accurate most of the time.

BLUES (34-13-4) at BLUE JACKETS (21-25-3)

TV: FS-MW, FS-O

Season series: The St. Louis Blues overcame a 2-0 deficit by scoring six unanswered goals to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets the last time these teams played, on Jan. 4, 2014. Patrik Berglund scored twice and Kevin Shattenkirk, David Backes, T.J. Oshie and Vladimir Tarasenko each had two assists.

Blues team scope: The Blues extended their franchise record for consecutive games with at least a point to 13 by defeating the Buffalo Sabres 3-0 on Thursday. Dmitrij Jaskin, Jaden Schwartz and Tarasenko scored for the Blues, who have won seven in a row. That matches a season-high. They are 12-0-1 the past 13 games. Jake Allen made 23 saves for his fourth career shutout and third this season. He also had an assist. Brian Elliott will start in goal Friday.

Blue Jackets team scope: The Arizona Coyotes defeated the Blue Jackets 4-1 on Tuesday, it was the third loss in a row for Columbus, which has scored four goals in that span. That was the start of a stretch of four of five games on home ice for Columbus. James Wisniewski scored the Blue Jackets' lone goal, which tied the game in the second period. Columbus sits in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division. "Regardless of where we sit in the standings, there's a sense of pride, on a personal level and on a collective level," coach Todd Richards told the Columbus Dispatch. "I believe in our guys, and I believe in their character, that regardless of where we sit, they're going to come out and play." Left wing Matt Calvert, who's missed two games with an illness, is expected to play Friday. Defenseman Jordan Leopold, traded to Columbus by the Blues earlier this season, is not expected to play. Richards told reporters that goalie Curtis McElhinney is expected to start.

[gaijin]

https://sports.yahoo.com/news/blues-blu ... --nhl.html

The St. Louis Blues are on the best stretch in franchise history and that doesn't seem likely to change against the spiraling Columbus Blue Jackets.

Seeking their first eight-game winning streak in over 12 years, the Blues can take over sole possession of the Central Division lead Friday night at Nationwide Arena.

St. Louis (34-13-4) has won seven straight and recorded at least one point in 13 consecutive games (12-0-1). The Blues scored twice in the third period and Jake Allen stopped 23 shots in a 3-0 victory at Buffalo on Thursday.

"It's two points in the bank on the road in the dog days of the season," captain David Backes told the team's official website. "We'll take it and again, we're in the midst of a pretty good run and I think coaching staffs in general tend to push harder when you're in the midst of good runs and don't want you getting complacent. That's understandable and we need to push through and get our game back to where it's dominant hockey from start to finish, the way it was at the beginning of this run.

"When we have that, it doesn't matter who we're playing or where we're playing it's a tough team to play against."

The Blues moved into a tie with Nashville for the top spot in the Central and are two points behind Anaheim for the league lead. A victory Friday would give them eight straight for the first time since a nine-game run Oct. 15-Nov. 5, 2002.

This would seem to be a favorable matchup for St. Louis, which has won 12 of 15 meetings with Columbus (21-25-3), including six of eight in Ohio.

Brian Elliott is 6-0-1 with a 1.98 goals-against average against the Blue Jackets, and he'll likely get a chance to improve on that after Allen's performance Thursday.

Elliott has a 2.03 GAA and two shutouts while going 8-0-1 in the last 10 games.

Vladimir Tarasenko, who has a goal in three straight contests, tallied twice before Backes found the net 22 seconds into overtime of a 4-3 win at Columbus on Dec. 14, 2013.

Tarasenko and Backes had two assists apiece in a 6-2 rout Jan. 4, 2014.

The Blue Jackets are rapidly falling out of playoff contention, losing eight of 11 games and three in a row after falling 4-1 at home to Arizona on Tuesday.

"I don't think anybody here is thinking we're going to quit," said defenseman James Wisniewski. "But we're definitely in a big hole. It's a slippery slope. You don't want to get that losing feeling back in this room."

Ryan Johansen has two goals in six games after netting eight in the previous nine. The center leads the team with 19 goals and has 45 points, tied with Nick Foligno for the team lead.

Johansen has a goal in each of the last two home meetings with the Blues, but had no points and was a minus-3 at St. Louis on Jan. 4.

Foligno has one point in 10 career games against the Blues.

Curtis McElhinney is slated to be back in net after rookie Anton Forsberg made 25 saves Tuesday. McElhinney, getting increased playing time with Sergei Bobrovsky out at least two more weeks with a groin injury, has lost all five career starts against St. Louis with a 5.14 GAA.

2 points, please.

[PGABluesFan]

I'll be at this game. Making the drive up from Kentucky. I expect a win and nothing less! This will be my first ever Blues game as an Away fan!

[gaijin]

I'll be at this game. Making the drive up from Kentucky. I expect a win and nothing less! This will be my first ever Blues game as an Away fan!

I had my first away game last week against the Capitals. It's a whole different experience. The Caps fans were pretty nice to us- they didn't have any reason to hate the Blues. Columbus, on the other hand...

[glen a richter]

Another W would be very nice. The scoring seems to have tailed off a bit since Shatty went down, he was a big catalyst to the offensive game. I think this will be a game much like against Tampa where Ells HAS to keep the game close enough for some offense to get generated later on in the tilt.

Just like when Schwartz came back and we suddenly started winning left and right, I think when Shatty comes back, we'll see an uptick in the gpg. Injuries are really helping clarify who's most important to this squad: Elliott, Schwartz and Shatty.

[glen a richter]

I'll be at this game. Making the drive up from Kentucky. I expect a win and nothing less! This will be my first ever Blues game as an Away fan!

I had my first away game last week against the Capitals. It's a whole different experience. The Caps fans were pretty nice to us- they didn't have any reason to hate the Blues. Columbus, on the other hand...

I've been the away fan every game of my entire life except for one. It's always pleasant chirping with the home fans. Ranger fans are tools--I've seen Ranger fans fighting with each other for crissake--and Islanders fans are generally pretty knowledgable, if you can find them. Most of them are bandwagon jumpers, as is evidenced this season.

[cardsfan04]

Another W would be very nice. The scoring seems to have tailed off a bit since Shatty went down, he was a big catalyst to the offensive game. I think this will be a game much like against Tampa where Ells HAS to keep the game close enough for some offense to get generated later on in the tilt.

Just like when Schwartz came back and we suddenly started winning left and right, I think when Shatty comes back, we'll see an uptick in the gpg. Injuries are really helping clarify who's most important to this squad: Elliott, Schwartz and Shatty.

Yep. It's true for all 3 of them, but the streak with a healthy Schwartz is crazy good. It's the current 13 game streak, plus like 5-6 games before he was hurt. And I believe the slump in late December perfectly matches up with his injury. His agent is going to have a field day with this when his contract is up.

[gaijin]

Another W would be very nice. The scoring seems to have tailed off a bit since Shatty went down, he was a big catalyst to the offensive game. I think this will be a game much like against Tampa where Ells HAS to keep the game close enough for some offense to get generated later on in the tilt.

Just like when Schwartz came back and we suddenly started winning left and right, I think when Shatty comes back, we'll see an uptick in the gpg. Injuries are really helping clarify who's most important to this squad: Elliott, Schwartz and Shatty.

Yep. It's true for all 3 of them, but the streak with a healthy Schwartz is crazy good. It's the current 13 game streak, plus like 5-6 games before he was hurt. And I believe the slump in late December perfectly matches up with his injury. His agent is going to have a field day with this when his contract is up.

Phrase of the week: "streak with a healthy Schwartz."

[cardsfan04]

Another W would be very nice. The scoring seems to have tailed off a bit since Shatty went down, he was a big catalyst to the offensive game. I think this will be a game much like against Tampa where Ells HAS to keep the game close enough for some offense to get generated later on in the tilt.

Just like when Schwartz came back and we suddenly started winning left and right, I think when Shatty comes back, we'll see an uptick in the gpg. Injuries are really helping clarify who's most important to this squad: Elliott, Schwartz and Shatty.

Yep. It's true for all 3 of them, but the streak with a healthy Schwartz is crazy good. It's the current 13 game streak, plus like 5-6 games before he was hurt. And I believe the slump in late December perfectly matches up with his injury. His agent is going to have a field day with this when his contract is up.

Phrase of the week: "streak with a healthy Schwartz."

LOL, I usually notice when I say things like that. That one completely slipped through.

[drwoland]

Another W would be very nice. The scoring seems to have tailed off a bit since Shatty went down, he was a big catalyst to the offensive game. I think this will be a game much like against Tampa where Ells HAS to keep the game close enough for some offense to get generated later on in the tilt.

Just like when Schwartz came back and we suddenly started winning left and right, I think when Shatty comes back, we'll see an uptick in the gpg. Injuries are really helping clarify who's most important to this squad: Elliott, Schwartz and Shatty.

You're forgetting that Lehtera got injured around the exact same time. He's got 30 points, although he was on a bit of a cold streak right before his injury and racking up some -'s..

[drwoland]

But, back on topic...

Blues 4
Jackets 1

[Krigloch the Furious]

may want to play better.
Pie and JayBo are sloppy

[Frusciante]

This (probable) loss I think we've all seen coming. Really average play against Tampa and Buffalo, and now we're getting killed so far in this game. Nothing that suggests we'd be able to come back. No energy whatsoever.

Tough one, but I'd rather we'd notch a win on Sunday instead...

[PGABluesFan]

I drove 3 1/2 hours for this!?

[Portland Blues]

Yeah...

Epic comeback time!

[Frusciante]

Is it just me, or has Bouwmeester looked absolutely aweful the last few games? I know he hasn't had a great season, but now that I've really looked at his play he's just all over the place. Bad reads, turnovers, you name it. He's been absolutely terrible the last few games. I'm definitely not one to cry trade at first sight, but if this continues I would see if I could get another D-man for him while his trade value is still quite high. I dunno, maybe it's just the booze talking...

[Portland Blues]

I drove 3 1/2 hours for this!?

At least they've scored one (so far) for you.

[Toasted Oates]

I would have rather a game like this happen against Lumbus than on Sunday. They've walked the razor's edge the last couple games, leaning on the goalies. They'll come out hard against Chicago. Plus, Lehtera is close....

[theohall]

What in the heck has happened to Bouwmeester? Even during the last few wins, he has been making seriously questionable decisions. Columbus made him look like an outclassed rookie several times tonight.

[theohall]

I drove 3 1/2 hours for this!?

You drove 3 1/2 hours to post in the Let's Go Blues forum?