Preview: Blues vs. Flames

BLUES The St. Louis Blues (20-20-4) are gearing up for a pivotal week that can shape the outlook of their playoff chances as they host consecutive games against a Western Conference opponent, the Calgary Flames, on Tuesday and Thursday.

With the playoff picture taking shape, the fight for a Wild Card spot is on. While there are only two Wild Card spots available in the Western Conference, the Flames and Blues are neck-and-neck to earn a spot. Currently the Flames are in the second Wild Card spot with 49 points, with the Blues trailing two spots behind them with 44 points.

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Tuesday will mark the second meeting between the two teams this season. In their first encounter on Dec. 5, the Blues earned a 4-3 overtime victory, which marked their fourth straight win over the Flames.

On Saturday, the Blues fell to the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1, after the offense struggled to solve goaltender Jet Greaves. The Blues’ lone goal came from defenseman Colton Parayko in the final 10.5 seconds of the game.

Following Saturday’s loss, Head Coach Jim Montgomery expressed his disappointment with the team’s inconsistency and slow starts, emphasizing the need for a mental shift moving forward.

“You’ve got to really fear and respect this league, or it’ll humble you,” Montgomery said. “We get humbled a lot. It’s a mental preparation thing that we’ve just got to be able to come to games and this is the way we start games, this is the way we start the second, this is the way we finish the second.”

The Blues look to rewrite the narrative on Tuesday, chasing their fifth and sixth consecutive wins over the Flames to climb up in the Wild Card standings as they close out their four-game homestand.

FLAMES The Calgary Flames (21-14-7) are coming to St. Louis on a three-game win streak, most recently earning a victory on Monday night against the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 5-2.

The Flames dominated the Blackhawks from the start, scoring their first goal within 74 seconds from puck drop. Jakob Pelletier’s two-goal performance and Yegor Sharangovich’s first shorthanded goal of the season helped secure the road win in Chicago.

On Jan. 7, Flames forward Connor Zary suffered a knee injury during the teams’ 3-2 OT victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Zary will be out indefinitely, which led the Flames to recall Rory Kerins from their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, on Friday. Kerins made his NHL debut on Monday and earned two assists. The 2022 draft pick leads the AHL with 21 goals.

Since the two teams met on Dec. 5, the Flames have gone 8-5-2 and are 6-3-1 in their last 10. They are currently in fourth place in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

BLUES Colton Parayko scored his eighth goal of the season on Saturday against the Blue Jackets. He is only two goals shy of matching his season-high (10), which he has achieved three times. In his last nine games, the assistant captain has eight points (three goals, five assists). During the last meeting with the Flames, Parayko scored the game-winning goal in overtime to secure the victory.

FLAMES Jonathan Huberdeau is on a three-game point streak (two goals, one assist) and leads the Flames in goals (18) and points (32). In 873 career games with the Flames and Florida Panthers, Huberdeau has 752 points (243 goals, 509 assists).

BLUE NOTES

• Since Dec. 23, the Blues have scored 38 goals, which is the most in the NHL in that span (2. Columbus, 35).
• The Blues are 10-6-4 in one-goal games this season, which shares the most wins in that scenario in the NHL (seven other teams with 10 wins in one-goal games).
• Parayko ranks fourth in the NHL in blocked shots with 107 (1. Jacob Trouba, 126).
• Zack Bolduc recorded his 10^th assist of the season on Saturday against the Blue Jackets and has a three-game assist streak. It is tied for the longest point streak of his career, which he has achieved once before (Apr. 7-12, 2024).