St. Louis Blues Game Preview: Team Shakes Up Lines Against Montreal Canadiens

The St. Louis Blues will play their second and final game against the Montreal Canadiens this season on Tuesday night, hosting the Habs at Scottrade Center to conclude a four-game homestand before heading out on a Canadian road trip.

The Blues last played the Canadiens on November 20 in Montreal, losing 4-1 as Jake Allen allowed multiple goals to Max Pacioretty. Vladimir Tarasenko, who was in the midst of a torrid hot streak at the time, scored the Blues’ lone goal.

Montreal hasn’t quite been at their best during the month of February, accumulating a solid but unspectacular 6-3-2 record. They do currently have the top record in the Eastern Conference at 38-16-5, so they’ll be a challenge for the Blues regardless of their recent performance.

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The Blues’ lineup will be altered more significantly on Tuesday than it has been any time in recent memory, as the top three lines will be shuffled. Patrik Berglund will move up to play with David Backes and T.J. Oshie on the top line, while Alexander Steen will become the new “S” in the “STL line” with Jori Lehtera and Vladimir Tarasenko, and Jaden Schwartz will play with Paul Stastny and Dmitrij Jaskin. The fourth line of Steve Ott, Marcel Goc, and Ryan Reaves is expected to remain intact.

Jake Allen will be in goal for the Blues against the Canadiens. The Blues play three more games this week, so each goalie is going to get a fair share of work, but by putting Allen in net against Montreal, who has the best record in the Eastern Conference, could be an initial indication that Allen has a chance to pass up Brian Elliott on the depth chart. After fighting through a rough month of December while Elliott was injured, Allen is undefeated since the beginning of 2015, having picked up the win in six games (five starts) while giving up two goals or less in all of them. Meanwhile, Elliott has taken the loss in four of his last six starts while giving up three goals or more in five of those six games.

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