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Blues Are 1-7 vs. Sharks-Ducks-Kings This Season |
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Ted Nolan threw a knuckle-curve when he announced after the morning skate that Ryan Miller will start against Marc Andre Fleury in Pittsburgh tonight. This being the middle game of a 3 games in four night set, I thought for sure that Nolan will play Enroth in Blitzburgh and come back with a fresh and rested Miller at home to face Washington on Tuesday night. Miller was brilliant once again as he made 36 saves in the 5-2 Sabres win in Columbus on Saturday night. The win snapped the Blue Jackets’ franchise record consecutive game win streak at 8 games.
Nolan wants to ride his hot horse against Sid and Geno.
“I just know how good he is and you play him as often as you can,” Nolan said. “You look at, especially this year going into the Olympics and monitoring our play time between both goaltenders. If you look at Miller’s numbers lately, it’s been pretty effective. He’s a little bit more well rested and in return, he’s playing much better.”
Thanks, Sabres.com
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The Washington Capitals will have to send their pro scout to Pittsburgh on Monday night to get a live, up-close-and-personal look at Miller. Enroth will likely get the Buffalo net when Ovi and the Caps limp into Buffalo. The Caps will be lounging at their Buffalo hotel watching the Sabres-Penguins game on Monday night. The Caps snapped their 0-5-2 losing streak with a 5-0 shutout of the suddenly stagnant Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.
The Caps are still in crisis mode. Expect the wildly inconsistent Braden Hotby to get the start for the Caps in Buffalo.
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Ryan Miller has not been traded. Yet. Nothing is imminent right now between Sabres GM Tim Murray and the suitor(s) with interest in Miller. The short, short list consists of St.Louis and Washington. TSN's Bob McKenzie confirmed to NHL Live on Monday afternoon that there is Miller trade talk.
Thanks, NHL Live
Miller, 33, is a pending UFA and has been linked to the Blues since last summer. Miller's $6.25 million contract is already 60% gone which ,means that his cap hit will be less than $3 million. The Blues would have to commit to signing Miller to a 5-6 year deal worth $8.5 million per season before he accepted a trade to the Blues.
Jaroslav Halak would likely be included in the deal. The Blues would need to move another higher salary player in order to get under the $64.3 million cap. TJ Oshie? Chris Stewart? Top prospect Ty Rattie would have to be included as well as a first round draft choice.
I’ve been telling you for some time now that Ryan Miller is and has bee on the radar screen of the St. Louis Blues. It’s been this way for most of this season. They send a scout to watch the Sabres live in person. Wanna know why? Ken Hitchcock and Doug Armstrong are concerned that their at-times lethal Blues continually get punked and have their lunch money stolen by their three most dreaded Western nemeses this season. Jaro Halak and Brian Elliott are not the only reason for the sour notes against the California Mafia, however, they haven’t done one iota to steal a game or two for their teams against the dominant troika. The Blues are a combined 1-7 thus far against the Sharks, Ducks, and Kings, with their one win of the lot coming in a lopsided 5-0 shutout of the Kings on January 2. The Blues will play the Ducks again on February 28, and will likely lose that game, too. You think goaltending isn’t the issue with the Blues? Take a look at the math. In eight games played, the Sharks-Ducks-Kings have beaten the Blues by a combined score of 33-12 this season, with 5 of St. Louis’ total goals coming in one game.
10/15 Sharks 6-2 over Blues
11/29 Sharks 6-3 over Blues
12/2 Kings 3-2 over Blues
12/7 Ducks 5-2 over Blues
12/17 Sharks 4-2 over Blues
1/2/14 Blues 5-0 over Kings
1/16 Kings 4-1 over Blues
1/18 Ducks 3-2 over Blues
This analysis illuminates two fatal flaws of the Blues:
1). Try as they might, Halak and Ellliott have not been able to beat Niemi, Hiller, Andersen,Quick, Jones, and Scrivens in head-to-head match-ups this season. Having a combined 4.13 GAA against three Western super powers is totally unacceptable.
2).The Blues lack finish against the premiere, elite-level goaltending of the Sharks, Ducks and Kings. The Blues’ top nine forwards and D cannot score on the best of the West.
Think of it like this:
If Halak and Elliott struggle to beat the three rink bullies in the regular season, how are they going to beat them in winner-take-all games during the real season (the playoffs)?
Miller to St. Louis chatter is more than just rumor.
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A Miller to St. Louis deal would create an ugly log jam for the Blues, who would have to move one of their pending UFA tenders. I suspect that the Blues would keep Elliott and trade Halak. Do the Sabres need a rental goalie for the stretch run? No. They have Jhonas Enroth who would then become the #1 if/when Miller were to leave. Matt Hackett would be the logical choice to be promoted from AHL Rochester to back-up Enroth. The Sabres could convert Halak into more “currency” by trading him at the March 5 NHL trade deadline to a bubble team like the NY Islanders or the Minnesota Wild so that they can make a run at the playoffs.
Making a move like this would allow the Sabres to maintain their current status in the NHL standings. In other words, they wouldn’t risk jeopardizing or losing their first or second overall NHL entry draft selection position.
Or, Tim Murray could trade Halak at the draft or before the July free agent frenzy begins.
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Speaking of the Blues, what’s up with power forward Chris Stewart? In 51 games this season, Stewart has 15 goals and 10 assists. He has 91 PIMs, too. On Saturday, sniper Alex Steen returned to the Blues lineup prompting Hitch to healthy scratch Magnus Paajarvi. Thus, Stewart was parked on L4.
Stewart played only 5:32 TOI (only 9 shifts) on Saturday afternoon on Long Island. He was –2 in the game. He played 12:52 TOI in the previous game vs. NY Rangers. At Monday’s practice, he skated again on the fourth line. Stewart isn’t injured.
Stewart is Ted Nolan's type of player: big, tough, skilled, and fearless.
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