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Generals Upset the Globetrotters? + Rink Rats!

October 6, 2009, 3:45 PM ET [ Comments]
Andy Strickland
St Louis Blues Blogger •1380 ESPN • RSSArchiveCONTACT
There’s a ton of hockey left this season but the Blues couldn’t be happier with the start they got off to over in Sweden.

I’m not so sure the NHL is all that thrilled with the ways things went over in Stockholm.

Word is the league went above and beyond to push the Red Wings over there as Detroit was prominent in all the ads and on the billboards.

This makes some sense considering the heavy Swedish representation on the Red Wings roster. The Blues don’t exactly share a comparable list of NHL superstars either when you factor in Detroit players Nicklas Lidstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, and Pavel Datsyuk.

From the sounds of it you would think the Harlem Globetrotters were facing off against the Washington Generals.




You don’t win in the NHL without depth.

This is probably the deepest Blues club they've had since 2003 when Scott Mellanby and Dallas Drake were scoring 20 goals complimenting players like Pavol Demitra, Cory Stillman, Doug Weight, Keith Tkachuk, Al MacInnis, and Chris Pronger.

How many NHL teams roll four lines consistently throughout a hockey game?

The Blues are in a position where they have four offensive lines who can all contribute and play in the offensive end. Having this type of quality depth is a dream situation for any head coach in the league and I thought Andy Murray did a marvelous job managing his bench in both victories against Detroit.

Murray had no problems getting the matchups he wanted in both games and at times he was willing to match offense vs. offense.

When you compare the ice time of individual players on the Blues to other rosters you rarely see this type of balance where everybody plays pretty much even minutes. For example all six D-men are averaging anywhere from 15-23 minutes in the opening two games.

You see similar balance offensively with Jay McClemet leading the way playing just under 18 minutes per game. Eleven of the 12 forwards dressed in the opening games in Stockholm received at least 12 minutes of ice with Patrik Berglund playing eleven minutes.

This doesn’t happen by accident.

Obviously ice time from one player to the next will fluctuate from game to game with power play and penalty killing situations dictating this. Performance will eventually come into play as well here.

To get to my point, managing minutes could play out to be even more important this season vs. years past. With the Olympics coming up in February teams are forced to play a condensed schedule. Word is the Blues will play the second most back to back games this season behind only the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Blues are hoping this depth means a fresher team come January and beyond.

Every game will play out differently and at some point the Blues will have to rely on their top offensive players playing more than 13-16 minutes.

It can’t be easy for skilled offensive forwards to be pulled off the ice after 15 seconds to enable a coach to get the matchup he wants.

Most fans know Murray refers to his offensive lines by colors as opposed to the standard 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. One could assume if he did it the traditional way, his line consisting of McClement, B.J. Crombeen, and Alexander Steen would probably be considered the 4th line. How many teams have their 4th line center lead all forwards in minutes played?

This is not your traditional 4th line we are dealing with here. All three of these guys can skate, play with the puck and are strong players capable of playing in both ends of the rink.

I would never compare Steen to some of the top offensive players in the league but his game is purely predicated around skill. It’s his versatility and responsible play that keeps him from playing with offensive players. You win with players like Steen and McClement on your roster.

Same with guys like McDonald, Kariya, Boyes, Oshie, Backes, Berglund and Perron which is why as some point they will see more ice. I should point out Backes averaged more than 17 minutes over the weekend.

If you’re a shutdown player in the NHL, playing for coach Murray is the ideal spot for you.

Just ask Ryan Johnson and Jamal Mayers.




Rink Rats!


Manny Legace is signing a 25 game professional tryout with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. He will make $105,000 which will allow him to sign with an NHL club without going through re-entry waivers.


Word is Edmonton is shopping D-man Ladislav Smid who would have gone to Ottawa if Heatley had agreed to go to the Oilers.

Colorado is willing to move D-man John-Michael Liles who could certainly bolster a number of NHL blue lines.



Blues Clues!

My prediction this season will be that Keith Tkachuk will not retire at the end of this year. Why would he? He can still help a hockey team and should have no issue scoring 20-25 goals this season. He recently told me he has not ruled out playing in 2010-2011. Will he play for a team other than the St. Louis Blues? I’d say that’s doubtful but as long as he continues to lead on and off the ice, it may not hurt to go one year at a time with the 500 goal scorer.

How long will it be before the Blues really begin negotiating an extension with goaltender Chris Mason? If He continues to play the way he has going back to last February it may not be a bad idea to get things moving.

When will Cam Janssen play? Who do you take out of the lineup is the better question? Fans shouldn’t get worked up on this issue as we all know injuries can happen at any moment. Look around the league and you will find teams like Montreal already decimated by injury. There will be a time the Blues will need to insert toughness and Janssen and D.J. King will find their way in.

Coming into the season it looked like Crombeen or Brad Winchester would be your only realistic candidates to sit. Both those players were solid in the opening two games and I wouldn’t be shocked to see Patrik Berglund sit a game if things stay the way they currently are.


Look for King to be taken off IR very soon.

The Blues really have no idea when they will get Captain Eric Brewer back in the lineup. I’ve heard mid to late November or even December as the likely scenario. He looked pretty good skating with his mates on Monday for the first time since lat season.

Blues insiders felt Carlo Colaiacovo was probably the Blues most consistent D-man in the opening two games.

His partner Mike Weaver wasn’t to shabby either as he was about as steady as it comes. Here’s a guy who has to scratch and claw just to get a one-way deal and is extremely dependable. He understands his boundaries and doesn’t try to play beyond his abilities.

Speaking to Blues forwards, they close their eyes and pray they won’t get hit with an Erik Johnson puck when he tees one up from the point. What a difference he and Paul Kariya make up top on the pp.

The Blues staff will be smart in how they manage Johnson’s playing time coming off a year without hockey and a serious knee injury. It makes little sense having him kill penalties right now. The last thing the Blues need is for him to break a foot blocking a shot.

Happy to hear D-man Jonas Junland burried two including the OT winner in a recent victory for Peoria.

Derek Armstrong cleared waivers this morning. He will be paid $105,000 in Peoria which means he won't need re-entry waivers to be called up to the NHL. Armstrong could have received a lot more AHL money but was willing to accept less to avoid needing re-entry waivers. He also passed up pretty decent money in Europe.

Join me tonight at Johnny Mac’s on Watson road for Blues Buzz from 6-7. Head Coach Andy Murray will join me live inside the store. Show can be heard online at www.kfns.com

Throughout the 2009-2010 NHL season, T.J. Oshie will provide Blues fans with Direct Access to behind the scenes content from his Verizon Wireless BlackBerry Tour. Each week you will get a new video and pictures directly from Oshie's phone exclusively from Verizon Wireless. Here is the link and it is a must add to your desktop favorite links: www.stlouisblues.com/directaccess

Next Monday October 12th Cam Janssen will be live at the O’fallon, MO Verizon Wireless store. I will be out there as well hosting the David Backes show from 2-3 with Backes on 590 the fan.


More to come,

Andy Strickland

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