Undisciplined Blues vow to regroup after loss
Greg WyshynskiESPN
BOSTON — For 21 minutes of Sport 1 of the Stanley Cup Remaining, the St. Louis Blues appeared just like the composed, assured workforce that gained the Western Convention. They took a 2-Zero lead by forcing turnovers with their punishing forechecks, whereas rookie goalie Jordan Binnington turned each Boston Bruins likelihood apart.
However from the second Bruins defenseman Connor Clifton scored at 2:16 of the second interval via Boston’s celebration of their Four-2 victory, the Blues weren’t the Blues. They have been sloppy. They have been undisciplined. And, in a rarity over their final a number of postseason video games, they have been overmatched.
“They seem to be a good workforce and they’ll power us into dangerous conditions and issues like that. However we’d like greater than we gave tonight,” stated Blues coach Craig Berube.
The Bruins had a 33-15 benefit in shot makes an attempt at 5-on-5 via the ultimate two intervals. They attacked the Blues’ zone in waves. They prevented the Blues from producing something near established offensive zone time after Vladimir Tarasenko’s aim a minute into the second interval, giving Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask a simple evening.
“What did we’ve got? Fifteen, 16 photographs? That is not sufficient,” stated Blues heart Brayden Schenn, low-balling the whole of 20 photographs for St. Louis. “He is a world-class goaltender. We have to not solely shoot extra pucks, we did not get sufficient site visitors round him. Suggestions, screens, we did not make it very arduous on him tonight.”
A part of that wrestle was not getting the puck deep sufficient to generate possibilities.
“They seem to be a forecheck workforce. That is how they set up territory,” stated Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy. “I believe we simply know the way to verify. I believe we have achieved it to Carolina, Toronto, Columbus. We all know the way to play profitable hockey when we have to and restrict the opposite workforce’s possibilities.”
However the nice undoing for the Blues in Sport 1 was their frequent journeys to the penalty field: 5 of them for a complete of 9:37 of penalty kill time. They entered the sport speaking about self-discipline in mild of the Bruins’ stellar energy play, which clicked at a 34 % success charge via three rounds, the most effective for the reason that 1980-81 New York Islanders. They ended up enjoying with hearth after which getting burned by an unassisted power-play aim by Charlie McAvoy within the second interval to fully erase their lead.
It wasn’t simply that the Bruins transformed, it is that killing these penalties left the Blues’ assault disjointed.
“We went to the field an excessive amount of. We misplaced our composure just a little bit,” stated ahead David Perron. “Once you get into penalty bother, numerous guys sit on the bench and it is powerful to get going. That is what occurred just a little bit.”
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In the meantime, the Bruins have been the extra disciplined workforce, with simply two penalties referred to as on them.
“We stayed out of the field. I believe that helps restrict the possibility makes an attempt. They’re spending power killing penalties in order that takes away a few of their offense,” stated Cassidy.
The silver lining for the Blues is that they nonetheless have an opportunity for a break up in Wednesday’s Sport 2, and that they’ve proven a propensity for bouncing again from these sorts of efforts — Binnington, particularly, has led these efforts.
“It isn’t at all times going to be good,” stated Binnington, who’s 5-2 after losses within the playoffs. “It is Sport 1. It is a seven-game sequence. We’ll regroup and are available again at ’em.”