The St. Louis Blues‘ brief road trip is coming to a close. The team has two games remaining before it returns to the comforts of the Enterprise Center. Their next stop is against the Utah Mammoth, the hosts of the 2027 Winter Classic, for a Friday night showdown.
Blues’ Gameday Preview: Blues at Mammoth
The Blues and Mammoth have met twice this season, both times in St. Louis. Utah won the first game, 7-4, behind a Logan Cooley hat trick. The Blues got the win in the next game, shutting out the Mammoth, 1-0.
Since the Mammoth’s move to Utah, the season series between the rivals is even at three wins apiece.
Time: 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time
TV: FanDuel Sports Midwest (St. Louis), Utah16 (Utah)
The Blues’ Story
The Blues are 17-19-8 on the season with 42 points. They are 5-4-1 in their last 10 games.
Blues Recent Game
The Blues lost to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday, 7-3. The Blackhawks rode a four-goal second period to break the game open. Team Canada Olympian Jordan Binnington struggled in goal, giving up all seven goals.
Related: The Decline of Blues’ Jordan Binnington
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
- Jake Neighbours – Robert Thomas – Jordan Kyrou
- Pavel Buchnevich – Brayden Schenn – Jimmy Snuggerud
- Otto Stenberg – Dalibor Dvorsky – Jonatan Berggren
- Alexey Toropchenko – Oskar Sundqvist – Nathan Walker
- Philip Broberg – Colton Parayko
- Tyler Tucker – Justin Faulk
- Cam Fowler – Logan Mailloux
- Joel Hofer/Jordan Binnington
Blues Team Leaders
Thomas leads the Blues in points with 30. Faulk, who entered the season as an unlikely candidate to lead the team in goals, finds himself there nonetheless with 11. Thomas leads the team in assists with 20. Tucker is the team leader in penalty minutes with 43. Lastly, Stenberg leads in the plus/minus department with a plus-5.
In goal, Hofer leads the Blues in all major goaltending statistics. He has nine wins, a 2.88 goals-against average (GAA), and a .900 save percentage (SV%).
The Mammoth Story
The Mammoth are 21-20-3 on the season with 45 points. They are 5-5-0 in their last 10 games.
Mammoth Recent Game
The Mammoth won their last game, beating the Ottawa Senators, 3-1, on Wednesday. Karel Vejmelka was the star of the game for Utah, stopping 32 shots in goal.
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
- Clayton Keller – Nick Schmaltz – Lawson Crouse
- JJ Peterka – Barret Hayton – Dylan Guenther
- Daniil But – Jack McBain – Michael Carcone
- Brandon Tanev – Alex Kerfoot – Kailer Yamamoto
- Mikhail Sergachev – Sean Durzi
- Nate Schmidt – John Marino
- Ian Cole – Nick Desimone
- Karel Vejmelka/Vitek Vanecek
Mammoth Team Leaders
Keller leads the team in points with 38. Guenther is the team leader in goals with 21. Keller is the assists leader with 25. McBain has the most penalty minutes with 34. Lastly, Marino leads the Mammoth with a plus-21.
In goal, Vejmelka leads with 19, a 2.65 GAA, and a .899 SV%.
Blues’ Storyline to Watch
The Blues have seen many young players get opportunities this season. The 20-year-old Stenberg just celebrated his first NHL goal on Wednesday. He is starting to record points more frequently, with three points in his last five games and six points in the ten games he has played this season.
Stenberg has been consistently close to being a point-per-game player in his career before reaching the NHL. If this point increase is any indication, the 2023 first-round pick could be on track to replicate that success quickly in the NHL. For a retooling Blues team, that would be a welcome sight.
Mammoth Storyline to Watch
Speaking of point-per-game players, Keller has enjoyed playing against the team he grew up rooting for. The Chesterfield native has played 34 games against the Blues, scoring 15 goals and 23 assists. Keller is enjoying more success this season. He has three points in two games, including the game-winning goal in their first matchup. Given the history, Keller could be in for another big game on Friday.
Enjoy the Game!
Check back in to The Hockey Writers throughout the day on Friday for updates regarding the lineup. When the game is over, do not forget to check in for the game recap.
