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 His job Monday night, Backes found out, would be centering a line
with right winger Vladimir Tarasenko and left winger Alexander
Steen, the team's two leading scorers.
"Going into the game, I was wondering what it was going to look
like," Backes said. "I think Vladi's been here three years, and I
don't know if I've started a game with him or played a full game
with him. You don't know what that's going to be like."
It turned out neither Backes nor the Blues had anything to worry
about.
Backes scored two goals and assisted on a third as the Blues beat
the Jets 3-2.
St. Louis snapping a two-game losing streak, tied for its longest of
the season, and handed the Jets their sixth consecutive loss
(0-5-1).
"(Tarasenko) makes a lot of time and space," Backes said. "Steener
was fantastic tonight, creating plays and making plays happen, and I
was the beneficiary of a few of them."
Tarasenko scored the other Blues' goal, his 11th of the season, and
also added an assist as the Blues bounced back from a 3-2 loss to
the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night.
The three-point game was the 12th of Backes' career.
"(Backes) is a guy who's asked to do a lot of things," said Blues
defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, who assisted on both of Backes' goals.
"At any given moment, he's asked not to score goals and shut down
the other team's top line. I think tonight was a reward for how hard
he played Saturday night. He gets to play with two good guys who can
get him the puck in good situations."
After Tarasenko gave the Blues a 1-0 lead with his fourth goal in
the last three games 5:33 into the first period, the Blues went on a
power play when Jets center Mathieu Perreault was called for
delaying the game when he shot the puck over the glass.
Just 27 seconds into the penalty, Backes got his first goal of the
night at 14:13. St. Louis' second power-play goal in 28 chances at
home this season increased the lead to 2-0.
"I heard Dave screaming, 'net, net, net,' so I knew he was there,
and fortunately it was right on his tape," Shattenkirk said.
That lead disappeared in the span of 36 seconds early in the second
period, however, as the Jets rallied to tie the game on goals from
defenseman Dustin Byfuglien and center Bryan Little.
Byfuglien was credited with a goal when his slap shot hit the leg of
Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester in front of the net and deflected
past goalie Jake Allen 2:16 into the period.
Little scored the tying goal, his team-leading ninth of the season,
at 2:52.
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The Blues did not take long to respond, however, as Backes took a
pass from Steen and flipped a backhander past goalie Michael
Hutchinson 1:32 after the Jets' tying goal, 4:24 into the second
period.
Allen made the one-goal lead stand up for the rest of the game,
spoiling the Jets' attempt to end their losing streak, which
included a 7-0 loss at Nashville on Saturday night. Allen finished
with 16 saves.
"It was a better effort," Little said. "Doesn't make it easier to
swallow that we lost again, but we skated much harder. We were
competitive in the game. We were down, we stuck together as a team
throughout the whole game. It doesn't feel better and make this trip
better that we put in an effort; sometimes it's not enough."
Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice had the same reaction.
"Based on the beating we took in Nashville, a lot of really good
things (happened)," Maurice said about the loss to the Blues. "We
made plays, we moved the puck, had some quickness, had some chances
and played a damn good road game in here. That was a long way to
come from that (Nashville) game, and it wasn't easy for them to do,
so you've got to give those players credit.
"It was absolutely the bounce-back we needed ... a better result to
feel good about it ... but certainly we know it's there."
NOTES: LW Jeremy Welsh was recalled by the Blues from Chicago of the
AHL and inserted into the lineup for Monday night's game, his first
game in the NHL since Dec. 14, 2013, when he was with Vancouver.
Welsh replaced RW Ryan Reaves, who was a healthy scratch for the
third time in the last four games. ... D Adam Pardy returned to the
Winnipeg lineup after being out since Oct. 18. ... Monday night's
game was the Jets' ninth game in nine cities (one home game) since
Oct. 31. They will host Vancouver on Thursday night. ... This will
be a busy week for the Blues, who play at Columbus on Tuesday night
and return home for games Thursday and Saturday.
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