After another strong season by the St. Louis Blues, finishing 49-24-9, fans are hoping for their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. However for the last 48 years, Blues fans have been left disappointed with early exits from the playoffs.
“I think the Blues have struggled because every time they get into the offensive zone, they do not shoot the puck as much as their opponents,” junior Tyler Hannegan said. “The Blues always try to go for the pretty play instead of going for the simple play of shooting the puck and crashing the net for a rebound.”
According to Blues’ enthusiast senior Collin Basler, the Blues are a different team than previous years.
“This year’s team seems more determined than ever to get deep into the playoffs,” Basler said. “They’ve battled through injuries to key players like Alex Steen and still managed to finish second place in the Central Division.They are among the top in the league in come-from-behind victories and I think that speaks to the spirit and determination of the team.”
In Game 1 of the Blues vs. Blackhawks series, the two teams were neck and neck with each other and were both scoreless s for all three periods of regulation play. It took the overtime period to finally get a win for the Blues, who now lead the Blackhawks 1-0 in the series.
“The Blues have a lot of strength in their goaltending and the fact that they have a lot of depth on the team,” senior Jack Russell said. “However, [the] Blues also have weaknesses too. They’ve had a lot of injuries throughout the season so they need to find a way to keep the team healthy throughout the playoffs. Also, the Blues have a problem with elevating their level of play to the necessary level to defeat the opponent, and teams like the Blackhawks will do whatever it takes to win another Stanley Cup.”
Since the game 1 overtime win for the Blues, they have managed to get victories in game 3 and game 4, allowing them to lead the series with three wins and one loss, their loss coming in game 2.
“If we beat the Blackhawks in round 1, our chances of winning the Stanley Cup definitely improve,” senior Nick Balestra said. “They are the best NHL franchise of this decade and are always a top threat in the playoffs.”
If the Blues manage to win game 5 of this series, which will take place Thursday, April 21 at 8:30 p.m. at the Scottrade Center, the Blues will have won the series against the Blackhawks and move on to the second round of the playoffs.
“Knocking the Blackhawks out would obviously be special, but it does not guarantee us a championship,” Balestra said. “We still have three tough series to come in order to secure the Cup.”
