It’s still a tight one in Scottrade. No score through two periods, and Brian Elliott just wants to see how long he can stretch his shutout streak — it’s cracked 200 minutes and doesn’t look like it’s stopping any time soon. Jimmy Howard looks like he’s back into form as well. There were concerns about his groin holding up for this game, but he seems to be doing ok so far, robbing the Blues with several outstanding glove saves.
The score is tied 0-0, and the Blues lead in shots 20-19. Unfortunately, they are also leading in penalties, with an ill-advised late hit on Todd Bertuzzi by Alex Steen starting the penalties for the period and a hook by Patrik Berglund concluding it. Oddly enough, a high cross check by Johan Franzen to David Backes after the whistle which left the captain bloodied was not a penalty.
Things like that don’t matter. If the Blues continue playing like they’ve been playing for 40 minutes, they can leave this game with a needed two points.