The St. Louis Blues return home after a brief, two-game road trip. After a frustrating loss on Wednesday, the Blues turned things around on Thursday night. Now, the team will seek a second-straight win at home against the Seattle Kraken. Blues fans attending the game will see some familiar faces, as Jaden Schwartz and Vince Dunn make another return to St. Louis with the Kraken. The winners of the last two Winter Classic games meet in downtown St. Louis. Who earns the two points?
Blues vs. Kraken Preview
The Blues and Kraken are meeting for the first time this season. Last season, the Blues won the season series, 2-0-1. Furthermore, the Blues lead the all-time series, 9-2-1. The last time the Blues fell to the Kraken in regulation was in February during the 2022-23 season.
Time: 7:00 Eastern Time
TV: FanDuel Sports Midwest (Blues), Kraken Hockey Network (Kraken)
Blues’ Recent Game
The Blues are 5-8-2 on the season with 12 points. On Thursday night, the Blues recorded their first shutout of the season with a 3-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres. Joel Hofer stole the show with a 28-save performance between the pipes. Mathieu Joseph was another standout player, scoring a shorthanded goal and adding two assists.
“I’m just trying to be aggressive on the penalty kill,” Joseph said. “When I see opportunities to attack, try to get breakaways, sometimes the opposition isn’t playing as tight defense on the power play. Got a lucky bounce at the blue line and tried to attack the net.”
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
It is difficult to project the Blues’ lineup for this game. Kyrou was a healthy scratch on Thursday in an attempt by head coach Jim Montgomery to send a message to the rest of the team. It can be assumed Kyrou will return to the lineup sooner rather than later.
Likewise, Montgomery may run it back with Hofer in goal following his shutout.
- Pavel Buchnevich – Robert Thomas – Jimmy Snuggerud
- Dylan Holloway – Pius Suter – Brayden Schenn
- Alexey Toropchenko – Dalibor Dvorsky – Alexandre Texier/Jordan Kyrou
- Mathieu Joseph – Nick Bjugstad – Nathan Walker
- Philip Broberg – Colton Parayko
- Cam Fowler – Justin Faulk
- Tyler Tucker – Matthew Kessel
- Jordan Binnington/Joel Hofer
Team Leaders
Suter leads the team in points with nine. Despite his injury, Neighbours is still the team leader in goals with six, although Suter is only one goal behind him. Thomas leads the Blues with six assists. Tucker leads the team with 24 penalty minutes. Lastly, among the skaters, Kessel leads in plus/minus rating with a plus-2.
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Between the pipes, Binnington leads the Blues with three wins and a 3.34 goals against average. Following his shutout, Hofer is now the team leader with a .864 save percentage.
Kraken’s Recent Game
The Kraken are 6-3-4 with 16 points. Despite their early success, the team is coming off a rough loss on Wednesday. Playing in front of their home fans, the Kraken fell to the San Jose Sharks, losing 6-1. It was a close contest for over half of the game, as the Kraken only trailed by two entering the final period. However, the Sharks opened up the game with three goals in the third period. Macklin Celebrini stood out with a goal and two assists for the Sharks. Ryan Winterton scored the Kraken’s only goal.
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
- Berkly Catton – Chandler Stephenson – Jordan Eberle
- Jaden Schwartz – Matty Beniers – Kaapo Kakko
- Mason Marchment – Shane Wright – Ryan Winterton
- Tye Kartye – Ben Meyers – Eeli Tolvanen
- Vince Dunn – Adam Larsson
- Ryan Lindgren – Brandon Montour
- Joshua Mahura – Jamie Oleksiak
- Joey Daccord
Team Leaders
Schwartz and Eberle are tied with the team lead in points with 10. Eberle leads in goals with five, while Schwartz leads with six assists. Lindgren leads the Kraken in penalty minutes with 27. Lastly, Mahura leads in the plus/minus category at a plus-6.
When it comes to goaltending, Daccord leads the Kraken with six wins and a .900 SV%. Philip Grubauer leads the league with a 2.12 GAA. However, it is worth mentioning that he has only played in two games this season.
Blues’ Storyline to Watch
When the Blues rebranded over the summer, they made a change to their jerseys. Their regular home jerseys became their “third” jerseys, typically worn for Saturday games. Their “new” home jerseys were introduced as a redesign of the jerseys worn by the Blues during the 2017 Winter Classic, which also served as their heritage jersey through the end of last season.
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Why is this a storyline? The Blues have only two home games scheduled this season. Both came when they were wearing the “third” jersey. With this game being on a Saturday, the Blues are expected to wear them once again. If the Blues earn a third win in the “third” jersey, Blues fans may petition the team to wear it more often.
Kraken’s Storyline to Watch
Schwartz has had a strong start to the season. The former Blue also has recent success against his former team. Last season, Schwartz scored two goals in three games against the Blues. The Blues and Kraken only play each other three times a season, so the sample size is not strong. However, a strong start to the season, combined with a good streak against the Blues, could suggest a look at Schwartz when he takes to the ice on Saturday.
