St. Louis Blues Game Preview: Team Looks for Jolt with Altered Lineup Against Philadelphia Flyers
After heading into Monday’s trade deadline without having made a major move, the St. Louis Blues were one of the league’s most active teams by the time the deadline passed, having added three NHL players and subtracted two in three separate moves. Though two of those three players–forward Olli Jokinen, who is expected to be a reserve for the most part, and injured defenseman Zbynek Michalek–won’t be in the lineup on Thursday, the Blues can see if they can get any sort of jolt from a shakeup on the blueline as they face the struggling Philadelphia Flyers.
That’s where 25-year-old Robert Bortuzzo, who apparently may be even bigger than his 6-foot-4, 215-pound listing, will replace Ian Cole, who was traded for him on Monday. Bortuzzo has not made much of an impact thus far at the NHL level, having collected just four goals and 16 assists with a plus-minus of minus-5 in 113 career games. However, the Blues are hopeful that his size and physicality will provide an aggressive element on defense that the Blues have been lacking to an extent all season. With both Bortuzzo and rookie Petteri Lindbohm now in the lineup, the Blues’ defensive corps may be more edgy than they have all season.
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Even after picking up just one point in Sunday’s shootout loss to the Vancouver Canucks, the Blues are still within striking distance of the first-place Nashville Predators, who have lost a season-high four games. A win on Thursday could put the Blues within two points of Nashville, who faces the tied-for-first-place New York Islanders on Thursday night.
Philadelphia, meanwhile, will struggle to have a chance at a playoff berth. They’re an underwhelming 27-25-12, and they currently sit behind both the Florida Panthers and the Ottawa Senators on the outside looking in for a Wild Card spot. They’ve struggled to receive a consistent amount of offensive production from their entire lineup, though forwards Jakub Voracek and Claude Giroux have made up for the deficiencies of the other players to an extent.
With the exception of the Bortuzzo for Cole swap, the Blues’ lineup is expected to stay the same on Thursday as it was in Sunday night’s loss. Brian Elliott, who was involved in a bizarre series of events on Sunday where he relieved Jake Allen, played just over six minutes, and then came back out of the game, will get the start against Philadelphia on Thursday.