The Blues went to Canada for the first time this season where their performances across three games likely foretold what’s to come this season. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the most average of times:
- In Winnipeg, the Blues made it to the first intermission tied 0-0, took a bad penalty (Jakub Vrana, then banished to the bench and ultimately the press box for the rest of the trip) and didn’t mount much of a comeback push in the third.
- In Calgary, knowing they were playing the first night of a back-to-back, the Blues delivered their best, most complete effort of the season. They crushed the will of the Flames, who admitted as much afterward. Joel Hofer delivered with the shutout, but it was a gratifying full-team effort.
- The next night in Vancouver, with the Canucks returning home for just their second night of the season in front of their own fans, the Blues looked fatigued, sloppy and outmatched, as the resurgent Canucks handed it to them. Despite final-score appearances, Jordan Binnington actually stood on his head. Thanks only to him, the Blues reached the first intermission trailing only 1-0 despite multiple penalties and sloppy defense. But they followed it up with more of the same over the next 40 minutes, and Binnington finally broke.
- The power play, currently league-worst, sucked throughout.
Berube on Vrana, via the Post-Dispatch:
In his career, Vrana has been one of the best goal scorers on a per-minute basis but has not contributed to other areas of the game when he’s not scoring goals.
“One hundred percent,” Berube said. “Just can’t wait for opportunities and be an opportunistic player to score goals. There’s got to be more. There’s got to be more.”
So here we are. The Blues are 3-3-1 and only marginally above the Blackhawks and Coyotes. The much-discussed new zone-based defensive approach is a work in progress. The goaltending is probably good enough to give them a chance. Colton Parayko looks like he might be delivering a bounce-back yaer.
But the roster’s overall talent is bound to hold them back, creating frustrating trips like the three-game run through Western Canada.