Blackhawks end road trip with Winter Classic preview

After securing a pair of victories in the Big Apple, the Blackhawks will try for the road sweep on Saturday when they face the Blues in St. Louis. It will be the last time the two teams play each other ahead of their Winter Classic clash on Jan. 2 at Busch Stadium. Chicago and St. Louis have traded wins in their first two meetings of the season; the Blues won 5-2 in the season opener on Oct. 12, while the Blackhawks notched a 2-1 overtime victory on Nov. 9.
St. Louis has lost just once in regulation at Scottrade Center all season and leads the Western Conference with 13 home victories. The Blues recovered from a 1-3-0 road trip with a 5-2 win over New Jersey on Thursday, coming back from a two-goal deficit, and sit in third place in the Central Division, six points behind Chicago, who returned to the top of the league table with their 5-4 win over the Islanders.
The Blackhawks' five goals were the most they've scored since Nov. 1, and the goal outburst was predicated upon a highly effective power play that produced three goals. Scott Darling gave up two goals in the opening 4 minutes of the game, but held on for a 28-save win, his fourth in five starts.

BREAD ARMY
Much like noted snipers Alex Ovechkin or Steven Stamkos, Artemi Panarin seems to have found his spot on the power play, setting up for one-timers from the left circle or lower. He scored twice from that spot on Thursday in New York and added an assist, giving him six points (3G, 3A) in his last three games. The 25-year old now shares the team lead with 29 points this season while ranking third with 13 tallies; only linemate Artem Anisimov (14) and Marian Hossa (16) have more for Chicago. Following up on his Calder Trophy season, Panarin has been remarkably consistent for the Blackhawks, never going without a goal for more than four games, and he's on pace to surpass 200 shots on goal for the season.
VLAD TO THE BONE
Vladimir Tarasenko was expected to be St. Louis' best player entering the 2016-17 season, and he's been performing as such over the last week and a half, posting 10 points (2G, 8A) over a five-game streak. After collecting a goal and two assists against New Jersey, he now ranks second in the NHL with 37 points (15G, 22A), trailing only Edmonton captain Connor McDavid. Tarasenko's 111 shots on goal share third in the league, and like Panarin, he's a player who needs special attention when he's in the offensive zone, with his blistering shot and willingness to let the puck go as soon as he gets in range of net. The 25-year-old has two goals and two assists in two outings against Chicago this season.
SHATTS OFF
On the blue line, the Blues boast one of the league's best offensive defenseman in Kevin Shattenkirk. The 27-year-old ranks second on the team with 22 points (7G, 15A), third-most among league blueliners. Shattenkirk went through a span of five games without a point before notching a goal and two assists in his last two contests.
Shattenkirk and Tarasenko are a big reason St. Louis has a top-10 power play, contributing a combined 27 points; the rest of the team combined has 42 points with the man advantage. Shattenkirk's 5 PPG rank second among NHL defensemen, while his 13 points are tops; Tarasenko shares second overall with 14 points on the power play, including 10 helpers.
NOTABLE ABSENCES
CHI: Corey Crawford (appendix)
STL: Carl Gunnarsson (lower body), Robert Bortuzzo (lower body), Ryan Reaves (day-to-day)
LINES

Harman -- Toews -- Hossa
Panarin -- Anisimov -- Kane
Rasmussen -- Kruger -- Panik
Desjardins -- Hinostroza -- Tootoo

Keith -- Hjalmarsson
Campbell -- Seabrook
Forsling -- van Riemsdyk

Darling
Johansson