TEAM SNAPSHOTS
BLUES With several franchise legends officially inducted into the St. Louis Blues Hall of Fame, the team looks to change the tide in their home-ice play as they continue their seven-game homestand.
At a record of 8-10-2 at Enterprise Center, the Blues have been performing below their typical standard at home. Over the last 10 seasons prior to 2022-23, the Blues have been a Top-5 team in the NHL at playing in their own building. This track record gives the Blues a lot of confidence that they can return to form, especially as the homestand's final four games consist of teams currently outside the playoff picture.
"(The top-line players) gotta find more emotion, they gotta find more energy and they gotta play with more grit right now," Head Coach Craig Berube said after Saturday's 4-2 loss to Tampa Bay. "When you're getting checked like that, you gotta fight through it and you gotta battle."
Berube praised his fourth line depth for their tenacity vs. the Lightning, creating an early goal with a pinpoint pass from Alexey Toropchenko and hard skating by Tyler Pitlick.
The Blues host the Ottawa Senators on Monday before continuing the week with two divisional battles vs. Nashville and Chicago before ending the homestand next week against the Sabres. The Blues and Predators have been separated by just a single point in the division standings since the start of 2023, so a win over Ottawa could make a big difference in establishing momentum for that pivotal matchup.
The Blues host the Senators with a record of 21-20-3, worth 45 points and fifth place in the Central Division.
SENATORS The Ottawa Senators made a number of changes during the offseason, but they have yet to pay off as the team still seeks its new identity and place in the standings.
Their biggest moves were acquiring forward Alex DeBrincat from Chicago in exchange for draft capital - including the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NHL Draft - adding goaltender Cam Talbot from Minnesota, signing seven-time All-Star Claude Giroux to a three-year contract and extending Tim Stutzle to an eight-year deal.
The Senators' season did not start strong, though they have picked up in recent weeks as they eye a move up the Atlantic Division ladder. A 6-12-1 (.342) start to the season has turned into a 13-8-2 (.608) record since Nov. 23, playing at a postseason-worthy pace in that span.
Ottawa is 5-4-1 in their last 10 games before Monday's matchup with the Blues, including an impressive shootout win over the League-leading Boston Bruins on Dec. 27.
Coming off an unfortunate 7-0 loss in Colorado on Saturday, however, the Senators will need to shake off that difficult performance quickly if they want to continue their season turnaround efforts.
They head to Enterprise Center with a record of 19-20-3, worth 41 points and seventh in the Atlantic Division.
HEAD-TO-HEAD The Blues split the season series with Ottawa last year, winning on the road and falling at home. Over their last 10 matchups with the Senators, the Blues are 7-3-0 with a 37-27 goal differential.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
BLUES Robert Thomas, who earned his team-leading 29th assist of the season on Saturday. Thomas has three points in three career games against the Senators, all coming in Ottawa on Feb. 15 last season.
SENATORS Brady Tkachuk - St. Louis native, friend of Robert Thomas and Ottawa's captain. Tkachuk leads the Senators with 41 points this season, looking to follow up his 30 goals and 37 assists from last year.
BLUE NOTES
With a win on Monday vs. Ottawa, the Blues will become the eighth franchise in NHL history to record 2,000 wins - and second non-Original Six team... Their eight points since the start of 2023 share No. 8 in the NHL. Their 31.6 percent power play ranks No. 4 in the League since the new year, going 6-for-19 since Jan. 1... Brandon Saad's five goals share No. 9 in the League in 2023, and Pavel Buchnevich's nine points share No. 14.
Issues at home continue to plague the St. Louis Blues.
Meanwhile, some offensive inconsistency and defensive struggles have highlighted the Ottawa Senators' current rut.
The Blues will try to avoid a third consecutive loss -- overall and at home -- when they face the Senators on Monday night.
A big reason St. Louis is currently on the outside looking in at the Western Conference playoff picture is its 8-10-2 home record. Entering play Sunday, the Blues were tied for the third-fewest home victories in the NHL.
They've dropped three of the last four there, including the last two -- 4-1 to Calgary on Thursday and 4-2 versus Tampa Bay on Saturday.
"Our home record's not been good. It hasn't been good all season," St. Louis forward Robert Thomas told reporters.
"We need to be more urgent and win at home."
The Blues, who continue to play with key contributors Vladimir Tarasenko (hand) and Ryan O'Reilly (foot) on injured reserve, rank 21st in the NHL in averaging 3.09 goals per contest. However, they could be in store for an offensive breakout Monday.
Ottawa has been outscored 21-9 during its current 1-3-0 stretch and was routed 7-0 at Colorado on Saturday. It marked the second time in three games that the Senators were shut out.
"It's embarrassing," said Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk, who has totaled four of his team-leading 41 points in the last seven contests. "I'm kind of at a loss for words right now. I wouldn't even say we were looking for answers.
"That can never happen."
Like St. Louis, Ottawa has also struggled to score, averaging 2.95 goals overall on the season (25th in the league). However, the team's defensive issues might be more of a concern at the moment. Losing defenseman Artem Zub to a lower-body injury also does not help the Senators' cause.
Anton Forsberg yielded all seven goals on 33 shots faced against the Avalanche. He's given up 13 goals over his last three starts. Meanwhile, teammate Cam Talbot has a 4.47 goals-against average in losing his past three starts.
St. Louis' Jordan Binnington made 26 saves against the Lightning and has a 3.99 goals-against average while splitting his last six starts. Backup Thomas Greiss has split his last four starts, but he owns a 2.26 goals-against average during that stretch and recorded a 35-save shutout at Minnesota on Jan. 8.
The Blues' Pavel Buchnevich scored his 15th goal of the season on Saturday. He's posted six of those goals and nine assists during his last 12 home contests. Thomas assisted on that goal and has four points in the last four at home for St. Louis.
Ottawa's Tim Stutzle recorded eight goals and four assists during a seven-game point streak from Dec. 22-Jan. 7. However, he's gone without a point in the three games since that run.
The Blues have won six of the last eight meetings with Ottawa. The Senators, though, got a goal apiece from Stutzle and Tkachuk during their 4-1 victory on March 8, 2022, in the most recent matchup at St. Louis.
