BLUESFaced with
two new injury absences to top-line forwards
, the St. Louis Blues stepped up to the moment on Tuesday night in Toronto. Trading blows with the NHL's No. 4-seeded team, the Blues played an aggressive game, withstood a strong push in overtime and took the second point in a four-round shootout.
"It's a 'next man up' mentality," said Brandon Saad. "We're missing players, but we're focused on our group and what we can do here. That was a big character win for us tonight."
Saad and the special teams units executed to near perfection, scoring on both of their power plays and breaking even on the penalty kill with a shorthanded goal - Saad's second in his last 11 games.
Ontario natives Jordan Kyrou and Josh Leivo (former Maple Leaf) added goals to the winning effort, and Brayden Schenn's tenacity was on full display with a team-high eight hits, two points and the deciding shootout goal.
The Blues will see if they can keep up their momentum on Thursday in New Jersey, hoping to beat a Devils team going through some adversity after starting as one of the NHL's best teams.
They'll head to New Jersey with a record of 18-17-3, worth 39 points and fifth place in the Central Division.
DEVILSOne of the biggest early-season stories in the NHL this season, the New Jersey Devils burst onto the scene with a 13-game win streak and Leaue-best 21-4-1 record before a recent slide.
Since Dec. 9, the Devils are 3-7-2. They were Top-5 in both goals scored and allowed up to that point, but have dropped to the bottom 10 in both during the rough patch.
On New Year's Day, the Devils fell in a shootout to the red-hot Carolina Hurricanes, though they did manage to bounce back Wednesday night with a 5-1 win in Detroit.
Three young stars have been the key drivers for the Devils' breakout year, with 21-year-old Jack Hughes leading the way. Hughes' 22 goals and 44 points lead the team, followed closely by 24-year-olds Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier.
The Devils will face the Blues with a record of 24-11-3, worth 51 points and second place in the Metropolitan Division.
HEAD-TO-HEADThursday night will be the first matchup between the Blues and Devils this season after the Blues went 0-1-1 in last year's season series. From Jan. 28, 2014 to Feb. 18, 2020, the Blues won 12 games in a row against New Jersey before going 0-2-1 in their last three matchups.
