Following tonight's game, the Ducks return to Orange County for a three-game homestand that begins on Sunday vs. Washington and continues with visits by the Blues on Wednesday and Buffalo Sabres next Friday.
This contest represents the halfway point of a three-game season series between the Ducks and Blues. These two clubs first met on January 15 at Honda Center, a 2-1 Blues overtime win. The OT setback snapped Anaheim's 10-game home winning streak against St. Louis dating to Jan. 7, 2010. The Ducks have posted a 39-35-11 all-time record vs. the Blues, including a 15-20-8 mark in St. Louis. Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf has 31 points (8g/23a) in 35 career games against the Blues, tops among current Anaheim skaters.
Tonight the Ducks will try to accomplish something they haven't done since January 10-14, and that's winning three consecutive games. It's been an inconsistent stretch of games since then, the club alternating wins and losses over a 10-game span before reeling off two in a row that included last night's resilient 1-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The victory vaulted them into sole possession of second place over the Edmonton Oilers (78 points) and two points ahead of the Calgary Flames. Jonathan Bernier put on a masterful performance, turning aside all 43 shots for his second shutout of the season and the 100th victory of his NHL career. Corey Perry pulled off a vintage move for the lone goal of the game - his 12th of the season - by cutting across the grain to find a better shooting angle.
Bernier, who has made seven consecutive starts, could very well get the call again tonight against the Blues. Jhonas Enroth has yet to appear in a game since being recalled from the San Diego Gulls on February 22. Jake Allen will get the start for St. Louis. Over his last three starts, Allen is 2-1-0 with a 1.01 goals-against average and .965 save percentage, including one shutout.
The Blues enter tonight's game holding down the second and final wild card spot one point ahead of the LA Kings, who defeated the Nashville Predators last night in overtime. St. Louis has won two in a row, most recently a 2-1 triumph over the Western Conference-leading Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night at Xcel Energy Center. Leading the offensive charge for the Blues is Vladimir Tarasenko, who enters the game tied for 10th in the league in goals (29). The 25-year-old winger leads the Blues in points (57), co-leads in assists (28) and ranks first in power-play goals (7), power-play points (19) and shots on goal (207).
Potential Line Combinations
Anaheim
Rakell-Getzlaf-Eaves
Cogliano-Kesler-Silfverberg
Kase-Thompson-Perry
Wagner-Shaw-Boll
Fowler-Bieksa
Lindholm-Manson
Vatanen-Montour/Holzer
Bernier
Enroth
St. Louis
Schwartz-Stastny-Tarasenko
Steen-Berglund-Perron
Jaskin-Lehtera-Paajarvi
Upshall-Brodziak-Reaves
Bouwmeester-Pietrangelo
Edmundson-Parayko
Gunnarsson-Bortuzzo
Allen
Hutton
