Preview: Blues at Canadiens

[February 11, 2017]  The St. Louis Blues received an immediate bump from a change behind the bench and will look to remain perfect on their five-game road trip when they visit the Atlantic Division-leading Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night. St. Louis has won the first three games of its trek to improve to 4-1-0 since coach Ken Hitchcock was dismissed.

The most noticeable difference for the Blues has been a dramatic improvement on defense, with only one goal allowed in wins at Philadelphia, Ottawa and Toronto. "I really appreciate the mindset of our players right now," coach Mike Yeo said of the commitment to defense. "We recognized that that was an area of our game that we needed to improve." Montreal's dormant offense came to life in a 5-4 overtime win at Arizona on Thursday night, halting a four-game losing streak (0-3-1). The Canadiens had scored just three times during the four-game skid and are seeking back-to-back wins for the first time since a three-game winning streak from Jan. 3-7.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, NHL Network, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), TVAS, CITY (Montreal)

ABOUT THE BLUES (28-22-5): Paul Stastny, who centers St. Louis' top line that features Vladimir Tarasenko and Alexander Steen, suffered a lower-body injury Thursday at Toronto and was labeled as "doubtful" to play Saturday. "So we don't expect it to be long-term or anything like that," Yeo said Friday. "I don't think he's going to play tomorrow; he could, but I don't think he will." Stastny is fourth on the team in scoring and has amassed eight goals and nine assists in his last 17 games.
 

ABOUT THE CANADIENS (31-17-8): Captain Max Pacioretty single-handedly awoke Montreal out of its offensive doldrums by scoring a pair of goals and assisting on two others in the victory on Thursday. Pacioretty's first tally of the game placed him among elite company, joining Chicago's Patrick Kane and Dallas' Jamie Benn as the only players from the 2007 NHL draft to score at least 200 goals. "He was a true captain. He took charge ... and deserves a lot of credit for that win," coach Michel Therrien said.

OVERTIME

1. Pacioretty has scored four goals in nine games versus St. Louis.

2. The Blues have killed off all 15 short-handed situations in five games this month.

3. Canadiens G Carey Price has allowed at least four goals in eight of his last 17 starts.

PREDICTION: Canadiens 3, Blues 2

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