To say the Blues didn't come to play tonight, would be a massive understatement. A quick start by the Blues made it seem like tonight was going to be the game it was hyped up to be. However after about six minutes into the first frame, the Hawks started to take control of the game.
From that point on, it was all Hawks. The Blues continuously missed passes, flubbed pucks, and lost board battles. Their biggest downfall however, would be the missed assignments and poor defensive positioning.
The Blues powerplay was completely dried up, and their penalty kill was below par. The first goal, scored by Duncan Kieth, with less than a minute to go, was scored on the powerplay. Ian Cole was the Blues player sitting in the box. Andrew Shaw was posted in front of Miller and the puck went just inside the post to the blocker side of the Blues netminder.
The second period started and the Hawks had all the play in the Blues end. Shaw would eventually score the second goal off a deflection. This one controversial as it looked to have been tipped with a high stick. It was deemed a goal after video review, but on a second camera angle, the stick was clearly above the crossbar.
The Blues really can't complain however, because fact is, they never came to play.
The Hawks out shot the Blues 22-to-14 through two periods and that was honestly surprising, because it never looked like the Blues put that many pucks on net.
The third period started with a Blues powerplay, and it was Kevin Shattenkirk who missed a wide open net on the powerplay and the Hawks would then take advantage again soon after.
Marcus Kruger would score just over five minutes into the third after the Blues got caught standing still, and the hole grew deeper for the Blues. It was a hole they would not climb out of.
Ben Smith would score the fourth goal for the Blackhawks on the powerplay. A scramble to the side of Miller resulted in Smith picking the puck up and putting it in past a sprawled out Ryan Miller. More missed defensive assignments were key in this goal. This resulted in a first for Ryan Miller with St. Louis, he was pulled from the net and Brian Elliott would come in. Miller stopped 23-of-27, but anyone who puts the blame on him needs their heads examined.
The Blues would finish the game with a powerplay, and they could never get anything going, much like the entire game, and the Blues were shutout for only the third time this season. Crawford stopped all 23 shots he faced in the game.
The Blues need to have a very short memory, move on to the next game and don't dwell on this loss.
We should all stand up and applaud Joel Quenneville, however, as tonight's win would be the 700th of his career, joining the all time greats, Scotty Bowman and Al Arbour, as the only coaches to reach the 700 win plateau.
The Blues are off until Saturday, when they take on the Philadelphia Flyers in Philly. I'd expect Brian Elliott to get a start in the next two games, as the Blues battle on back-to-back days on Saturday and Sunday. They take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on NBC on Sunday.