What went right for the Blues – and wrong for the Wild – in Game 1

Mike McKenna
Mike McKenna(MikeMcKenna56)
What went right for the Blues – and wrong for the Wild – in Game 1

Game 1 of the Western Conference first-round matchup between the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild played out as expected: a spirited battle. But the final score – 4-0 in favor of St. Louis – was a surprise.

Not because the Blues won. I think this series is ripe to go six or seven games. But the Wild getting blown out on home ice? That caught me off guard.

Minnesota was in the game. It had opportunities to score. But ultimately, the Blues did what they’ve done at an alarming rate all season: convert chances.

Let me indulge you with a few observations.

Minnesota lost Game 1 in the penalty box.

Going into the series, Minnesota was well aware that the Blues possess one of the top power plays in the NHL. Bullet point No. 1 on the scouting report should have been to play disciplined hockey and not give St. Louis any freebies.

The Wild failed miserably in that regard. Jordan Greenway took two avoidable penalties: one for roughing and another for cross-checking. Tyson Jost took a retaliatory slashing penalty. In all, Minnesota gave St. Louis six power plays. Blues forward David Perron converted twice with the man advantage and completed the hat trick just seconds after Kevin Fiala exited the penalty box midway through the third period.

I understand that the Wild were trying to establish a physical presence early in the series. But they went too far. St. Louis is not a team that can easily be bullied. It has too many battle-hardened veterans.

The penalty kill has been Minnesota’s achilles heel all season. The Wild finished the year 25th in the NHL while a man down. And on Monday night, it showed. The Blues moved the puck with ease and buried their chances.

On the flip side, I’m not letting St. Louis off the hook. It also allowed the Wild six power-play opportunities. That’s far too many, and I didn’t like the retaliatory roughing penalty Justin Faulk took late in the second period after teammate Nathan Walker had already skated away from an altercation.

The Blues killed all six penalties. They blocked a lot of shots. And Ville Husso stood tall, making 11 saves while skating shorthanded. But they, too, need to realize that NHL referees have been instructed to call the game exactly the same as the regular season.

Simply put: it was a sloppy game.

Ville Husso outplayed Marc-Andre Fleury.

In his first career Stanley Cup playoff start, Husso posted a 37-shot shutout. And he had to work for it. The Blues goaltender was tested early, making several huge stops on Wild forwards Kirill Kaprizov and Marcus Foligno in the first five minutes. Without those early saves, I think the complexion of the game might have been very different.

Going into the game, Husso was 5-0 lifetime against the Wild. But the postseason is different. And the Blues netminder was going up against a three-time Stanley Cup winner in Marc-Andre Fleury.

Husso’s last game of the regular season against the Vegas Golden Knights wasn’t pretty – he allowed six goals on 44 shots. But the Finnish goaltender responded Monday, holding the Blues in for long stretches.

At one point with just over five minutes remaining in the second period, Minnesota was outshooting St. Louis 25-15. Yet Husso held strong, making several breakaway saves over the last 25 minutes of the game to secure victory for the Blues.

The Wild were far better than St. Louis during 5-on-5 play, and despite help from the post on several occasions, Husso was very much in control. But I can’t say the same for Fleury, who looked like he was pressing at times.

Yes, Fleury made an outstanding save on Ivan Barbashev’s penalty shot attempt in the first period, patiently waiting out the Blues forward and making a left arm save. But too often Fleury was caught out of his crease, over-sliding and chasing the play.

Fleury is one of the most athletic and explosive goaltenders in the world. His game is built around those attributes. But Marc-Andre can get into trouble when he becomes too aggressive. And I saw some of that last night.

So now the question is: does Fleury start Game 2? Or does Cam Talbot – who hasn’t lost in regulation since March 1 – get the nod from Wild head coach Dean Evason?

Where was Alex Goligoski?

The Minnesota defenseman had 30 points in 72 games this season to go with a plus-41 rating. Yet Goligoski was scratched. Was there something more to it? There better have been. Because it didn’t make any sense to me before the game. And it’s even worse now that the Wild were shut out in Game 1. Minnesota needs his offense and leadership. Goligoski may not be big and heavy. But he should be in the lineup.

Where was Vladimir Tarasenko?

Take a look at the stat sheet. Next to Tarasenko’s name it’s all zeroes. No points. No hits. No shots. Despite almost 16 minutes of ice time, including 3:22 on the power play. That’s rare for Tarasenko, especially this season. Credit to Minnesota: it did a nice job of shutting down the Blues forward, along with his linemates Buchnevich and Robert Thomas.

Is Matthew Boldy the dark horse of the series?

Before Game 1, I picked Joel Eriksson Ek to play that role for the Wild. And while Eriksson Ek was noticeable on Monday – contributing five shots on goal and creating havoc in front of the net – it was 21-year old Matthew Boldy who really caught my eye. He may have only had two shots during the game, but Boldy is so shifty. And creative. If Minnesota gets rolling, I could easily see Boldy in a starring role.

For shame, Jared Spurgeon.

With just over a minute remaining, the Wild captain cross-checked Buchnevich. The NHL Department of Player Safety fined Spurgeon $5,000 for his actions. I’m just really surprised that Spurgeon let his frustration get the best of him. He’s someone that’s perennially in the running for the Lady Byng Trophy. It was a dirty play and Buchnevich was lucky to escape injury. If Spurgeon is going to lead Minnesota, it has to be by example.

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