The St. Louis Blues entered the holiday break on a two-game winning streak with wins over the Florida Panthers and Chicago Blackhawks.
In this edition of Blues’ 3 Up, 3 Down, I will discuss the comeback win over the Blackhawks, Blues prospects at the 2024 World Juniors, and much more.
Plus One: Major Comeback Win Over Blackhawks
The Saturday night win at the Enterprise Center over the Blackhawks was a wild one. The Blues seemed to have lacked effort in the first two periods and the beginning of the third period, but turned it up after Nick Foligno scored a shorthanded goal to give the Blackhawks a 5-2 lead.
Related: Blues’ Top Line Resurgence Under New Coach Bannister
They got back-to-back power play markers from Brandon Saad and Jake Neighbours to make it 5-4. Fewer than 30 seconds later, Robert Thomas drove the net and passed it into the slot where Jordan Kyrou buried it to tie the game. With less than three minutes to go, Blues defenseman Justin Faulk flipped an innocent puck from in front of the circle and got it past Blackhawks goaltender Arvid Soderblom to give them a 6-5 lead. The deal was sealed when Kyrou picked a pass off and scored an empty netter to give the Blues a crazy 7-5 win. The Blues are now 2-1-0 against the Blackhawks this season and 8-2-1 against them since the start of the 2021-22 season.
Minus One: Brayden Schenn
In his first season as captain, Brayden Schenn has struggled on the ice. From everything seen publicly, he’s been a phenomenal leader overall. His goal-scoring pace is similar to last season, where he scored 21, but it’s down from where it was early in two of his first four seasons with the Blues. His faceoff percentage is under 50 percent, but that’s been the norm for his entire career. In the last two seasons across 115 games, Schenn has a plus/minus of minus-40. That stat isn’t the most important, but it shows the struggles he’s had overall.
Plus Two: Blues Prospects at World Juniors
The 2024 World Juniors are underway and the Blues have seven prospects participating. Four of the prospects are first-round picks.
- Jimmy Snuggerud (United States) (2022 first-round pick)
- Dalibor Dvorsky (Slovakia) (2023 first-round pick)
- Otto Stenberg (Sweden) (2023 first-round pick)
- Theo Lindstein (Sweden) (2023 first-round pick)
- Jakub Stancl (Czechia) (2023 fourth-round pick)
- Juraj Pekarcik (Slovakia) (2023 third-round pick)
- Aleksanteri Kaskimaki (Finland) (2022 third-round pick)
Snuggerud is a major piece for a loaded United States team after scoring the first goal of the tournament for the team in their 4-1 win over Norway. Stenberg and Lindstein are on a good Sweden that could challenge the United States or Canada when it’s all said and done. It’s also important to note that Lindstein had two assists in Sweden’s first game, which was a 6-0 win over Latvia. Keep an eye out for these seven prospects at the 2024 World Juniors continue.
Minus Two: Slow Starts
The Blues got off to slow starts overall in both of their wins last week. They were getting outplayed in the first period against Florida and slowed down after taking a 1-0 lead over Chicago. They need to play better early in games to avoid burying themselves. Their comeback against the Blackhawks won’t happen often. The Blues can hang with the majority of opponents in the NHL, but slow starts will hurt them.
Plus Three: Robert Thomas is Elite
The Blues’ best player this season by far has been center Robert Thomas. He’s bounced back after a slow season in 2022-23. He’s been a steady number-one center in a time when they needed it the most.
In 33 games, he has scored 13 goals and 24 assists for 37 points. His overall metrics are phenomenal too. He has won 54 percent of faceoffs and is a plus-12 overall. He’s lived up to the billing of a top center and is quietly one of the top centers in the league overall.
Minus Three: Tough Schedule Ahead
The Blues return to the ice tonight, Dec. 27 with a matchup against the Dallas Stars, who they are 1-0-1 against this season. They also end the calendar year with a back-to-back against the Colorado Avalanche and Pittsburgh Penguins. If the Blues can win two of these three games, they would feel good going into the new year.
