ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI – The St. Louis Blues roared out of the gate after the Olympic break winning two of their first three games.  St. Louis ran into an opposing netminder twice before meeting up with the Avalanche in Denver Saturday night.  The Avs have looked great all year, especially when playing St. Louis, and Saturday was no exception.  The Blues managed to remain in the playoff hunt standing on the outside looking in shoulder to shoulder with three other teams.

Schedule Results of the Past Week:

March 2, 2010

Blues 5, Phoenix 2 (29-25-9)

The St. Louis Blues jumped out of the starting gates on Tuesday night defeating the Coyotes and running Ilya Bryzgolav in the process.  T.J. Oshie and David Backes had two points to lead St. Louis.  The Blues struggled offensively all season and never found a rhythm.  As the Blues find themselves on the doorstep to the playoffs looking in, they will need to mount another run similar to last seasons in order to leap into the post season as several teams are currently crowded around the entry.

Scoring

1st Period

03:43 PHX Joel Perrault (1) - Assists: P. Mueller (13)
08:53 STL T.J. Oshie (14) - Assists: D. Backes (23) & P. Kariya (18)
14:02 STL Jay McClement (9) - Assists: A. Steen (14) & C. Colaiacovo (15)

2nd Period

10:11 STL Andy McDonald (20) - Assists: P. Berglund (10) & R. Polak (13)
12:30 STL PPG - David Backes (14) - Assists: T. Oshie (24) & P. Kariya (19)
19:04 STL Brad Boyes (11) - Assists: A. Steen (15) & C. Colaiacovo (16)

3rd Period

08:15 PHX Matthew Lombardi (14) - Assists: none

Goalies

StL – Chris Mason (W, 37/39)
Phx – Ilya Bryzgolav (L, 17/22)
Phx – Jason LaBarbera (13/13)

March 4, 2010

Blues 6, Dallas 1 (30-25-9)

 For the second straight game the Blues won in dominating fashion running the opposing in the process.  St. Louis improved in their second game back from the Olympic break holding Dallas to a lone point.  St. Louis struggled all season to get their offense going and it seems that Davis Payne took the time to sit his players down and develop sound game plans on the chalk board and proper execution on the ice.  Paul Kariya looked of his old self scoring twice and assisting T.J. Oshie in the third for a total of three points.

Scoring

1st Period

09:28 STL Paul Kariya (13) - Assists: none
15:16 DAL Loui Eriksson (24) - Assists: J. Neal (22) & B. Richards (51)
17:28 STL Brad Boyes (12) - Assists: A. Steen (16) & R. Polak (14)
17:45 STL Paul Kariya (14) - Assists: T. Oshie (25) & D. Backes (24)

2nd Period

01:50 STL Alex Steen (16) - Assists: C. Colaiacovo (17)

3rd Period

03:55 STL Patrik Berglund (10) - Assists: D. Perron (19) & A. McDonald (20)
13:58 STL T.J. Oshie (15) - Assists: P. Kariya (20) & E. Johnson (24)

Goalies

StL – Chris Mason (W, 29/30)
Dal – Marty Turco (L, 7/11)
Dal – Kari Lehtonen (14/16)

March 6, 2010

Colorado 7, Blues 3 (30-26-9)

 Chris Stewart used his first NHL hat trick to power the Avs past St. Louis on Saturday night.  Milan Hejduk returned from a injured reserve to score twice, his 16^th and 17^th of the season.  The Blues would not be quiet though scoring three goals and placing 42 shots on Craig Anderson as the Blues remain committed to their improved offensive scheme.  Alexander Steen would score twice following David Perron’s opening goal midway through the first period.

1st Period

08:35 STL David Perron (16) - Assists: E. Brewer (6) & P. Berglund (11)
08:46 COL Milan Hejduk (16) - Assists: P. Mueller (15) & M. Duchene (24)
09:58 COL Chris Stewart (22) - Assists: P. Stastny (48) & T. Galiardi (18)

2nd Period

00:54 COL Chris Stewart (23) - Assists: T. Galiardi (19) & R. Wilson (13)
01:18 COL Milan Hejduk (17) - Assists: R. Wilson (14) & P. Mueller (16)
10:07 COL T.J. Galiardi (12) - Assists: C. Stewart (27) & P. Stastny (49)
10:38 STL Alex Steen (17) - Assists: J. McClement (15) & B. Boyes (26)
19:03 COL PS - Chris Stewart (24) - Assists: none

3rd Period

04:23 STL Alex Steen (18) - Assists: C. Colaiacovo (18) & M. Weaver (6)
18:42 COL EN - Matt Hendricks (6) Backhand - Assists: R. O'Reilly (14) & S. Yelle (4)

Goalies

StL – Chris Mason (L, 11/15)
StL – Ty Conklin (15/17)
Col – Craig Anderson (W, 39/42)

Team News: Perhaps the week’s biggest news was not the end of the Winter Games or even the beginning of the final two months of the NHL season, but rather the trade deadline.  The Blues made three minor trades prior to the deadline, sending Aaron Palushaj to Montreal in exchange for Matt D’Agostini; Hannu Toivenen and Danny Richmond to Chicago for Joe Fallon; and sending Yan Stastny to Vancouver for Pierre-Cedric Labrie.

Blue’s Clues: The Blues emerged from the Olympic break with a renewed sense of offense.  In total the Blues have played three games averaging 4.67 goals per game.  The number is almost double their pre-Olympic schedule.

Quote of the Week: Chris Mason after the Colorado loss: "You definitely have to give them credit, but we didn't play up to our standard.  They simply outworked us. We knew these guys were a hard-working team, they've been playing that way all year, so it's on us for being outworked. We got away from our game."

 You may contact the author at:  John.Strathman@prohockeynews.com