St. Louis Blues Look to Reverse Last Week’s Fortunes Against Minnesota Wild

The St. Louis Blues will look to maintain sole possession of first place in the Central Division on Saturday when they face off against the Minnesota Wild in a matinee matchup at the XCel Energy Center. The Blues will be looking to experience better success this time around against Minnesota than they did last Saturday, when they trudged through a lackadaisical third period and ended up giving up two goals as they lost 3-1. The Wild will certainly be motivated, as they currently hold onto one of the Western Conference’s final playoff spots.

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As it has been since the return of defenseman

from injury and the ascension of forward

into a more-or-less regular role, the Blues’ lineup will be unpredictable again on Saturday evening. If the defensive rotation that the team has utilized in recent games stays the same, it will be

’s turn to spend a game in the press box while

and

play. With that said, Bortuzzo has played well, so it’s no guarantee that he ultimately comes out of the lineup against the Wild.

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It’s even more difficult to predict how the forwards will be aligned, as there’s been no distinct pattern to the rotation. The fourth line of Porter,

, and

has played well recently, but if the staff wants to incorporate a more tempered offensive approach, rather than just reckless aggression, it’s possible that

could get back into the group. Coach Ken Hitchcock has also tried to find playing opportunities for veteran forward

, so it’s always within the realm of possibilities that he could end up playing as well.

will get the start in goal against Minnesota before giving way to

on Sunday against the Detroit Red Wings.

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