The St. Louis Blues still found a way to win at home. All it took was one goal with just over five minutes left in the game Jan. 19 against the Edmonton Oilers. The Blues won the game 1-0 at the Scottrade Center thanks to a goal by Alex Pietrangelo. David Backes and Carlo Colaiacovo assisted on the goal.
It was the third win in a row for the Blues, who climbed back into first place in the Central Division. With 62 points, St. Louis is the best team in the NHL along with the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers. The win was also an NHL-best 20th at home. It was also their league-best ninth shutout.
Jaroslav Halak only had to stop 15 shots en route to another shutout. The Blues pelted the Oilers with 39 shots, 19 of them in the first period alone. It was a true team effort on the offensive and defensive end. The Blues got plenty of shots and prevented more of them on the defensive side of the ice. Edmonton's Nikolai Khabibulin was the the only reason the score was just 1-0.
It was just a low-scoring game against a team towards the bottom of the standings. Yet getting so many wins at home is a huge confidence booster for the Blues. They've won with blowouts and with close games. Their current three-game winning streak has all been by one-goal games. Earlier in the month, St. Louis won three games by three goals or more.
It's good to know that the Blues are learning what it takes to win in all kinds of conditions. Some games they get ahead early and hang on later. Others involve mad dashes in later stages of the game to test the moxie of the team.
Whatever formula head coach Ken Hitchcock is using, he needs to keep it up. His next task after that is to bottle up the winning ways at home to take them on the road. Getting a ton of momentum into the All-Star break is fantastic. The Blues' playoff seeding will be determined by how they perform on the road in the second half of the season.
Until those road games get here, fans should revel in their team's success while it lasts. A playoff berth may still be in the Blues' future come April.
William Browning was born in St. Louis and has been a lifelong Blues fan.
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