Home HockeyBuzz Register Login
Tonight's loss to the Hawks must really sting for the Blues.

They played tight defense and shut down the champs for about 54 minutes and Jaroslav Halak was showing exactly why the Blues gave up a former first-round pick for him.

But naturally the Blackhawks stormed back and won it in overtime. The second straight game the Blues have lost in OT after leading 2-0.

But as much as it hurts now, the Blues should hold their heads high, because they just skated toe to toe with the Stanley Cup Champs and managed to shut them down for nearly the entire game.

They may be 2-1-2 on the young season but they have played some solid hockey thus far, and you can tell they are slowly building towards being on the winning end of these games. They will grow and learn from these painful losses and they'll soon become the ones who come out with the wins on a nightly basis.

I firmly believe the Blues will learn from these games THIS year and they'll make the playoffs and already be mentally tough after these painful losses this year and the countless third-period collapse they had last year.

The biggest difference this year is that they have an elite goaltender in net. Jaroslav Halak did everything he could to give the Blues a chance to win, and you can sense the Blues have confidence that he will do that in every game this year. If the Blues know they have a solid last line of defense, they'll be more comfortable on the ice and be able to relax. At times last year, I don't think they knew what would happen if a puck got past the defensemen.

In conclusion, I am frustrated with the back to back overtime loss, but I see the bigger picture. They have 6 points in 5 games and they're at least getting points and limiting their regulation losses so far. I think the Blues showed tonight that they can compete with any team in the NHL on any given night, whether it be the playoffs or an early season contest.
Filed Under:   Blues   Chicago   St. Louis   Hawks   Halak  
October 19, 2010 10:05 AM ET | Delete
No shame for the Notes. They are a team on the rise and they play hard. Nice blog, pal.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to leave a comment.