ST. LOUIS — After Sunday’s loss in Nashville the St. Louis Blues have now dropped five consecutive games. That means they’ve only won two of their last eight games since returning from the NHL All-Star break in January.
This is the same team that lost only four games in the entire month of December with both goaltenders thriving.
Now the Blues sit at last place in the NHL in goals allowed in the last 20 games. Things have turned quickly, and there’s a multitude of reasons why.
Let’s start with goaltending, which is always the position that takes the most heat when it comes to losing streaks. Jake Allen has been a reliable backup option when needed, and he’s been needed more than one would have anticipated at the start of the season. Allen still has a .922 save percentage this season in 20 games. He has 2.36 goals against average. While that statistic isn’t pretty, it’s nothing that would surprise anyone after Allen’s numbers last season. If anything, it’s a step up.
Jordan Binnington’s numbers have trended the opposite direction. In 42 games this season, Binnington now has a .909 save percentage. Perhaps the more shocking stat is the following one. Binnington has a 2.72 goals against average. This means he’s allowing nearly three goals per game. That would coincide with why the Blues are ranked last in the league in goals against since the All-Star break.
Binnington being “exposed” is a controversial topic. It’s normal for opposing teams to better understand a goaltender’s strengths and weaknesses overtime. But Binnington doesn’t necessarily have pin-pointed strengths and weaknesses based on the goals he’s been allowing. It’s safe to say he’s not been nearly as sharp as he was in December, but the blame can’t all be placed on the goaltender.
The Blues only allowed 24 shots on net against Nashville on Sunday. The Blues had 39 shots on net. The difference in these games is the quality of chances, and the ability to capitalize on an opportunity.
Binnington simply can’t stop a drive at the net when he’s being screened by his own defenseman. Binnington also can’t stop a goal from an opposing player in the crease when no Blues defenseman is to be found in close proximity. Simply put, Blues defense is struggling.
When Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester suffered a cardiac episode on Tuesday in Anaheim, it caused trauma. It caused a swirl of emotion throughout the locker room, and it poked a hole in the defensive pairings.
Bouwmeester and Colton Parayko have been paired together for the majority of the three years Parayko has been in the league. Bouwmeester not only provided a solid presence on defense, but a calming presence on the ice for the entire team.
The defensive core hasn’t seemed to adapt as strongly or as quickly as needed.
The Blues are allowing nearly three goals on average per game since the All-Star break, but there hasn’t been the necessary offensive help to make up for this either.
On Thursday in Vegas, Blues forward Zach Sanford scored four goals. That was following his previous six-game point streak. And as If that wasn’t enough, Sanford netted another against Nashville on Saturday.
Before that, the spotlight was on Parayko who scored four goals in three games leading up to the game in Anaheim.
Secondary scoring is always a positive, but it needs to be secondary. On every successful, Stanley Cup winning team, there’s a core group of top-tier, veteran players that lead the team in scoring.
In the past 20 games, the Blues don’t have that. Ryan O’Reilly has 10 goals this season. He does have 41 assists, which makes a big difference, but he was the team’s second leading goal scorer last year only behind Vladimir Tarasenko.
Without Tarasenko in the lineup this season there’s an even bigger need for players to step up and score.
The Blues will look to snap the losing streak on Tuesday against a struggling New Jersey team. The Devils sit at last place in the Metropolitan division with only 54 points.
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