BLUESThe St. Louis Blues showed their resilience in the early days of the season on Wednesday night in Seattle. After burying three goals in the first 13 minutes of action, the Blues went scoreless for the next 49 minutes of regulation and overtime. Justin Faulk - scoring his second goal of the night - eventually netted the game winner after holding strong and demonstrating the team's perserverance.
"Good teams find a way to win," said Brayden Schenn. "You're gonna need guys every night, and guys stepped up - Faulk with the big goal in overtime got us our two points."
The Blues have scored four goals in each of their two games played thus far, keeping a strong offensive pace with standout play by Jordan Binnington holding firm in net. The 29-year-old goaltender has made 55 saves on 60 shots faced so far, playing 60 minutes on Opening Night and just over 62 minutes in Seattle.
"It's (about) just enjoying the moment, trying to find a way and staying focused throughout the game," said Binnington. "We're definitely happy with the win tonight, but we have to keep building."
Playing the second of a three-game road trip, the Blues head to Edmonton for an afternoon matchup with the Oilers. With them, they'll bring a 2-0-0 record, worth four points and fourth place - with the fewest games played - in the Central Division.
OILERSThe biggest move the Edmonton Oilers made this offseason was in goal, signing former Toronto Maple Leaf Jack Campbell to a five-year, $25 million deal. Last season, Campbell was selected to the NHL All-Star Game and finished with a 31-9-6 record, .914 save percentage, 2.64 goals-against average and five shutouts.
Campbell hopes to be the net presence that Edmonton needs to vault stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl over the top after the club was swept by Colorado in the Western Conference Final last season.
Draisaitl and McDavid, among the best duos in the NHL, are continuing their electric pace of play with eight and 10 points, respectively, in four games. With three goals in their opening night against Vancouver, McDavid became the third player in NHL history to record a hat trick in multiple season-opening games.
Head Coach Jay Woodcroft, brought in mid-season last year and finishing with a 26-9-3 record, hopes that this is the year that the Oilers' top-end talent can break through and reach the Stanley Cup Final.
They are off to a 2-2-0 start, worth four points and fourth place in the Pacific Division.
HEAD-TO-HEADThe Blues went 1-1-1 last season against the Oilers with an even goal differential over the three games. The Blues are 7-3-2 in their last 12 games against the Oilers, and are 3-2-1 in their last six trips to Edmonton.
