After shutting out Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday, Oct. 22, the St. Louis Blues (3-0-0) are the NHL’s lone remaining undefeated team. Torey Krug (1) opened the scoring at 5:04 in the first period with a power-play (PP) goal to make it 1-0. Neither team scored again until the third period when Justin Faulk (3) sailed a 200-foot shot into the Oilers’ empty net with just 1:02 remaining to seal the game. Jordan Binnington made 23 saves in the shutout, improving his save percentage (SV%) to .940 and his goals-against average (GAA) to 1.65. The team collectively held both McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to five total shots.
The Blues will remain in Canada for tonight’s matchup against a Central Division foe in the Winnipeg Jets (2-3-0). The Blues are favored to win this one, but when these two teams faceoff, it’s always a tight game for both sides. They went 1-2-1 last season against Winnipeg.
Related: Blues Roundtable: Reverse Retro 2.0
St. Louis Blues Projected Lineup
Forwards:
Brayden Schenn – Ryan O’Reilly – Jordan Kyrou
Ivan Barbashev – Robert Thomas – Vladimir Tarasenko
Jake Neighbours – Logan Brown – Josh Leivo
Alexey Toropchenko – Noel Acciari – Nathan Walker
Defense
Nick Leddy – Colton Parayko
Torey Krug – Justin Faulk
Niko Mikkola – Robert Bortuzzo
Goalies
Thomas Greiss – Jordan Binningon
Lineup Notes
This lineup is from today’s (Oct. 24) morning skate. Pavel Buchnevich has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury and appears to still be out. Brandon Saad was not on the ice for the morning skate. No word has yet been given on his status. Center Logan Brown, who missed the tail end of the preseason and the first three regular season games, will be in the lineup for the first time this season. Goaltender Thomas Greiss appears to be making his Blues debut.
Winnipeg Jets Projected Lineup
Forwards
Kyle Connor – Mark Scheifele – Mason Appleton
Cole Perfetti – Pierre-Luc Dubois – Blake Wheeler
Morgan Barron – Adam Lowry – Sam Gagner
Dominc Toninato – David Gustafsson – Axel Jonsson-Fjallby
Defense
Josh Morrissey – Neal Pionk
Brenden Dillon – Nate Schmidt
Logan Stanley – Dylan DeMelo
Goalies
Connor Hellebyuck – David Rittich
Quick Look at the Jets
The Jets are off to a middling start at 2-3-0. They lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 on Saturday, Oct. 22, to kick off their homestand. New head coach Rick Bowness has installed a more aggressive approach on defense in an attempt to incite more scoring on offense. The results haven’t been there so far – defenseman Neal Pionk has already tied last year’s goal total (three), but other defenders are often getting caught too deep in the offensive zone and have been prone to giving up odd-man rushes and high-danger scoring chances going the other way.
Offensively, this team is led by Pierre-Luc Dubois (four points), Cole Perfetti (four points), and Mark Scheifele (three points) through their first five games. Winger Kyle Connor, who had a career-high 93 points in 2021-22, has only registered two points so far. Nikolaj Ehlers, another scoring threat, was placed on injured reserve a few days ago with a lower-body injury that will keep him on the shelf for a short while.
Related: Blues Binnington Gamble Paying Off Early
Players to Watch
St. Louis Blues: Vladimir Tarasenko
With an assist (four) on Krug’s PP goal against the Oilers, Vladimir Tarasenko has registered at least one point in every game so far for the Blues this season. He’s currently leading the team in points with six (two goals, four assists) and is tied with Robert Thomas for the lead in plus/minus (plus-5). With him being in a contract year, it appears that Tarasenko is doing everything he can early on to ensure a big payday for himself in the offseason.
Winnipeg Jets: Kyle Connor
As I mentioned above, Kyle Connor had a career year in 2021-22, scoring 93 points (47 goals, 46 assists). While he is off to a slow start this season, I would expect him to begin heating up at some point. In 16 career games versus St. Louis, he’s better than a point-per-game player (eight goals, 13 assists, 21 points) while registering a plus/minus of plus-12 – his highest mark against any opponent. He’ll look to be the spark that ignites the Jets’ stagnant offense tonight.
Where You Can Catch the Game
St. Louis Blues @ Winnipeg Jets – 7:00 PM CST
Tonight’s Blues-Jets game will be broadcast on Bally Sports Midwest and Bally Sports+. The radio call can be heard on 101 ESPN and the 101 ESPN app.
