Blues at Maple Leafs preview

BLUES (26-17-3) at MAPLE LEAFS (25-17-3)
7 p.m. ET; TSN4, FS-MW, NHL.TV

The Blues are 0-2-1 in their past three games following a three-game winning streak and 4-7-1 in their past 12.
The Maple Leafs have lost their past two games (0-1-1) and are 2-3-2 in their previous seven. They have gone seven games without a regulation victory since defeating the Arizona Coyotes 7-4 on Dec. 28.

Players to watch

Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko, who has scored in each of his past two games, has five points (two goals, three assists) during a three-game point streak and eight points (four goals, four assists) in his past seven games.
Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly, who scored in Toronto's 4-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Jan. 10, has nine points (goal, eight assists) in his past nine games.

They said it

"I had a good run there before the bye week and coming back with me shows confidence in me. We're just excited to get back into it after sitting there for a week and watching other teams get points." -- Blues goaltender Carter Hutton, who is 3-0-1 and has allowed nine goals in his past four games
"We know that we have to take steps here and go on a bit of a run. We know we're capable of it. We don't have any doubt but it's a matter of executing it. It's one thing to believe that or think that but it's more important to go out there and do it." -- Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly

Blues projected lineup

Ivan Barbashev -- Paul Stastny -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Dmitrij Jaskin -- Brayden Schenn -- Alexander Steen
Vladimir Sobotka -- Patrik Berglund -- Tage Thompson
Magnus Paajarvi -- Kyle Brodziak -- Chris Thorburn

Carl Gunnarsson -- Alex Pietrangelo
Jay Bouwmeester -- Colton Parayko
Joel Edmundson -- Robert Bortuzzo
Carter Hutton
Jake Allen
Scratched:Scottie Upshall, Oskar Sundqvist, Vince Dunn
Injured:Jaden Schwartz (ankle), Zach Sanford (shoulder)

Maple Leafs projected lineup

Zach Hyman -- Auston Matthews -- William Nylander
Patrick Marleau -- Nazem Kadri -- Leo Komarov
James van Riemsdyk -- Tyler Bozak -- Mitchell Marner
Matt Martin -- Frederik Gauthier -- Connor Brown
Morgan Rielly -- Ron Hainsey
Jake Gardiner -- Connor Carrick
Travis Dermott -- Roman Polak
Frederik Andersen
Curtis McElhinney
Scratched:Dominic Moore, Josh Leivo, Andreas Borgman
Injured:Nikita Zaitsev (lower body), Nikita Soshnikov (lower body)

Status report

Bouwmeester did not participate in the morning skate but is expected to play. … Soshnikov skated but will likely be sent on a conditioning stint with Toronto of the American Hockey League once he is ready. He has been out since Nov. 24.

Stat pack

Stastny has six points (three goals, three assists) in his past five games. … Nylander has four points (goal, three assists) during a four-game point streak and has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in his past 11 games.