+2
The Blues have scored points in a franchise-best 18 straight home games, which has put them in a comfortable playoff position.
The St. Louis Blues have kept the game close with their strong power play performances, but the Colorado Avalanche have tenaciously stayed in the game, keeping the score tied at 2-2.
Colorado took the lead early on a D Shane O'Brien goal ten minutes into the first period, but the Blues fought back, turning an early power play into a LW David Perron goal, tying the game at 1-1. The Blues earned a second power play shortly thereafter, and again Perron smashed a a successful shot past Avalanche G Semyon Varlamov.
The Blues have converted both of their only two power plays into goals this Saturday night despite sporting the third-worst power play conversion rate in the NHL at 13%. With minutes remaining in the 2nd Period, the Blues continue to look for ways to crack the Avalanche defense, having landed 23 shots on goal to the Avalanche's 12.
For more on the St. Louis Blues, check out the SB Nation Blues blog at St. Louis Game Time. For Colorado fans, drop by the Avalanche blog Mile High Hockey. Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more score updates and game recaps.
The Blues have won back to back road games for the first time since November, with a commanding 3-1 victory in Ottawa and a 4-3 shootout victory against the New Jersey Devils. The common denominator? Brian Elliott. Elliott is continuing his quest to finish with the lowest GAA and the highest save percentage in the league, and he seems to be doing a pretty good job of it. He stopped all 15 shots he faced after Jaroslav Halak was pulled Thursday night, including every shot in the shootout.
Elliott will need to be strong again tonight, seeing as how the Blues are out another offensive cog. Matt D'Agostini left Thursday's game early after getting hit, and he will miss both weekend games with concussion-like symptoms. Kris Russell is also out with the flu, so Ian Cole will be back for tonight and probably tomorrow.
Brian Elliott was in net for the Blues 4-0 victory over the Avalanche on January 7th along with Avs goaltender Jean Sebastien-Giguere, who stopped 35 shots that evening. Jiggy won't be in net tonight, as it's assumed that Semyon Varlamov, who has stepped into the backup goaltender role, will be starting. He's never lost a game against the Blues, but the ones that he's participated in have been generally close affairs.
While the Blues seem to be sitting pretty in a playoff spot for right now, the Avalanche are fighting for one of the last playoff spots in the West. With the Central Division taking four out of eight slots, there's not much room for error. The Avalanche, who are second in the Northwest Division behind the Vancouver Canucks, sit just one point out of the playoffs right now. Motivation will be high for them, as they'd love to rebound from last season's disastrous finish.
Blues Vs. Avalanche Recap: St. Louis Wins 3-2 In Overtime, Stretches Win Streak To 3 Games
The St. Louis Blues (33-14-7, 73 points) proved too much for the Colorado Avalanche (28-25-4, 60 points), winning early in overtime, 3-2.
St. Louis dominated in the second and third period, but had no goals to show for it. In the second period, the Blues out-shot the Avalanche, landing 13 shots on goal (SOG) to Colorado's 6 SOG, and in the third, the Blues lasered 18 SOG to only 4 attempts from the Avalanche. The Blues finished the night with a 44 to 19 SOG.
In overtime, though, the Blues only needed two shots as C Patrik Berglund launched a 46-foot shot just three minutes into the extra period that D Carlo Colaiacovo redirected for a game-winning tip-in goal and a 3-2 final. On the night, Colorado goalie Semyon Varlamov actually played admirably, saving 41 shots for a .932 save percentage.
The Blues will be back in action on Sunday, squaring off against the San Jose Sharks at 6:00 p.m. CST in St. Louis.
For more on the St. Louis Blues, check out the SB Nation Blues blog at St. Louis Game Time. For Colorado fans, drop by the Avalanche blog Mile High Hockey. Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more score updates and game recaps.
Feb 11 10:08p by Bradley Woodrum