St Louis Volume 4, Issue 31 Game Time Februar y 21, 2009 Four Dollars of No Respect The Game Day Guide To St. Louis Blues Hockey Established in 2005 By Brad Lee that the Blues have been better, but not a lot better than the four teams right in front of them in the standings. Over 24 games, can It‟s hard to tell where this hockey season is going for the they keep that minimal edge and keep moving up? Maybe. St. Louis Blues. We‟ve written more than once in this paper that the season was over weeks ago. Hopefully we were wrong. Thanks to a schedule that will keep most readers of this rag up at night, the Blues only have two games left against Eastern With the injuries, the uneven goaltending, the injuries and the Conference teams. That means 22 of their last 24 will be injuries, fans started talking about the team‟s chances to draft nail-biters every single night. first overall before Christmas. But it seems the Blues aren‟t ready as a group to turn the lights out just yet. It won‟t be easy. Of the teams standing between them and eighth place, the Blues have four games left. They have four games with The Blues have 24 games left. That‟s more than the Coyotes and Avalanche who have the same a quarter of the season left to be played. There number of points. So that‟s almost one-third of are four teams with more points in the the schedule against teams in their vicinity in standings than St. Louis. Ignoring the fact the standings. Add the two games against that there are two with the same number of teams in Florida from the other conference points and NONE with fewer points, it is and that means 14 of their games are against doable that the Blues pick up five points on teams in the top half of the Western the field and finish in eighth place. But Conference. don‟t write your check covering your mythical playoff bill yet. All that last paragraph says is that the Blues will have the chance to win games against In the past 10 games, they have a 5-2-3 teams they are directly competing with for the record, which translates to 13 points. That‟s the final playoff spot. But they will also have to best point total over that time span for all the teams TM compete well and win against the teams that below seventh place in the Western Conference. So that have earned safe entry into the playoffs. So the means if the Blues keep up this pace, they will keep climbing the opponents are a mixed bag between now and when the schedule standings. On the downside of that equation, the teams right in ends on Easter, April 12. front of the Blues have pretty similar records over their last 10 as well. Nashville, tonight‟s opponent, has 11 points in its last 10. Of their 24 games left, 11 of them are at home counting tonight. Los Angeles has earned 12 points and Minnesota 11 while also The Blues are 15-11-4 at home, a respectable record but not that losing three games in a row. That brings us to ninth place and the good. On the road they are a disappointing 10-15-3. That will have Anaheim Ducks. They‟ve lost three in a row as well and have to get better if the season is to be extended into April. And with gained only eight points in their last 10. What that all means is (Continued on page 26) Today’s Records, Injuries & News Today’s Team Records: Today’s Injuries: Today’s News & Notes: Blues: Predators: Blues: LW Paul Kariya (hips) and Current NHL ironman, COL forward 25-26-7 (57 points) 27-28-4(66 points) D Eric Brewer (back surgery) are out. Andrew Brunette may miss tonight‟s 5th in Central 4th in Central RW Dan Hinote (upper body) is day-to- game. He has played in 509 straight 13th in Western 12th in Western day. games. Last Ten Games: Mats Sundin (VAN) returns to TOR Predators: D Alexander Sulzer Blues: Predators: tonight for the first time since leaving. (shoulder) and F Scott Nichol 5-2-3 5-4-1 (concussion) are out. Game Time staff apparently hosting a Blues fan from the Netherlands Season Series: All-Time Series: tonight. 4-0-1 29-21-10-2 CAUTION: St. Louis Game Time contains extreme sarcasm and less-than-gentle language. But it is a hockey paper, so you should fucking just get over it. Volume 4, Issue 31 From The Editor February 21, 2009 Time to empty out the ol‟ Editor‟s in-box Whether it‟s because he leaves his feet so St. Louis Game Time again. Here are a bunch of little topics that I much or because he‟s caught more than a Established: November 6, 2005 need to address. few guys wearing the Note with their St Louis, Missouri head down or because he always has I don‟t mind admitting when I‟m wrong, Phone: 402-2266 such a shit-eating look on his face, he and I was way wrong on my first take on Cam www.StLouisGameTime.com makes it easy to scream out, “Kill him!” Janssen. When he was acquired in exchange whenever he‟s on the ice. for Bryce Salvador, my first reaction was that Godfather the Blues should have shopped around some Despite his reputation as a dirty Jeffio more before settling on that deal. Not that I hitter, I‟ve come to respect his game thought Salvador was going to bring some more. I think he has learned how to cut great return, but I expected more than just a down on the dangerous stuff, like Publisher & Editor-in-Chief PR scheme. the high elbows and boarding Sean Gallagher people, but has managed to keep The move looked like a simple [email protected] an edge to his game. There‟s ploy to put a hometown kid in a plenty of video of him freight- Bluenote in order to have a good Advertising training guys and the vast story to tell and to try to sell some [email protected] majority of them could have more tickets. It didn‟t help any when his first [email protected] been avoided if guys had their heads up. game was overhyped by the team and media. Sorry folks, that‟s hockey. Sometimes a The local TV broadcast even featured a „Cam borderline hit happens to fall on the legal Distribution Cam‟ that followed his every movement on side of that border. John Nicolay the ice. He was interviewed between periods. Now this doesn‟t mean that I like the Amy Benoist, Becky Benoist, His family was interviewed. It was a little Billy Cash, Clarence Walker sickening. I thought that we were being guy, and I still want to see someone played down to by the team‟s marketing punch his head clean off tonight, but I department. have to admit that he‟s one of those guys: Columnists if he‟s on your team, you love him; if he‟s Chris Gift, Duke, Brad Lee, It also didn‟t help that Janssen was kind of Answer Man & Brian Weidler on any other team, you hate him. a mess last year. He played too wild and used his head too little. He took dangerous runs at Without re-hashing the entire Manny Contributors people. He took dumb penalties. He retali- Legace saga, there was one aspect of the Jeffio, Jeff Browning, LosBri, ated. He fought at stupid times. He was situation that has been bugging me. Childhood Trauma, Dan Doke, Jeff becoming a bit of a joke. During his exit interview with the local Fahrenkrog, Jeremy Pratte & Chris Reed media he made the comment that it But this year has been a different story. I really threw him off to not be offered an Photographer have to assume that it‟s the coaching staff extension to his contract and to then Andrew D‟Angelo that got to him, because he plays with have the Blues sign a backup for him purpose now. In the last few weeks we‟ve Mission: who made more money than he did. At seen him go start fights when they needed to first I really thought, “Wow, these guys Game Time will provide prospect be started as well as decline fights when they information, up-to-date statistics, articles are really just man-children, aren‟t they? were unnecessary. We‟ve seen him play his that spark discussion and humor that You make $2.5 million and are the position and lay a big hit when the opportu- points out the best and worst about our starter on an NHL club, but you‟re favorite team and sport. We are all fans of nity arises, rather than his old modus worried about who is making 20% more the Blues and our opinions will reflect operandi of going way out of position to those of subjective fans. than you?” crush someone. Most importantly, we‟ve The paper is published for every home seen him have situational awareness and But if you look at it from outside the game, excluding the pre-season, which we refuse to retaliate after drawing a penalty. bubble of sports, where I think egos are a all know sucks. little too big and the process of thinking He has become a valuable member of the things through rationally is often Rights & Permissions: team and I‟m glad to say it.