{"id":84097,"date":"2020-08-27T09:00:18","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T13:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonhockey.com\/?p=84097"},"modified":"2020-08-26T23:32:22","modified_gmt":"2020-08-27T03:32:22","slug":"st-louis-blues-defence-was-biggest-problem-in-the-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2020\/08\/27\/st-louis-blues-defence-was-biggest-problem-in-the-playoffs\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Louis Blues Defence Was Biggest Problem in Playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonhockey.com\/nhl-teams\/blues\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">St. Louis Blues<\/a>&#8216; goaltending certainly was an issue in the playoffs, it was not the biggest issue. The biggest issue by far was how easy it seemed it was for the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonhockey.com\/nhl-teams\/canucks\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Vancouver Canucks<\/a> top scorers like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/p\/petteel01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Elias\u00a0<\/strong><b>Peterson<\/b><\/a>, <b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/h\/horvabo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Bo Horvat<\/a>\u00a0<\/b>and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/m\/millejt01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">J.T. Miller<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>to make the St Louis Blues defence look like it belonged in the minors, not a group that just won the Stanley Cup.<\/p>\n<h2>The Ugly of the St Louis Blues Defence<\/h2>\n<p>There are plenty of examples, but here is one of the worst ones. This is the Game 2 game-winning goal from Horvat with<strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/b\/binnijo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jordan Binnington<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0in net.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Horvat scored two goals, including the OT winner, as the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#Canucks<\/a> took down the Blues 4-3, for a 2-0 series lead. \ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n<p>Highlights | <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/uRrSWMlKgE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/uRrSWMlKgE<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/dmZzahX4I5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/dmZzahX4I5<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Canucks\/status\/1294461984784580611?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">August 15, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Here, Vancouver defenceman <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/h\/hughequ01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Quinn Hughes<\/a><\/strong> passes the puck to Horvat. He has an easy breakaway because both Blues defencemen <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/p\/pietral01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Alex Pietrangelo<\/a><\/strong> and<strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/g\/gunnaca01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Carl Gunnarsson<\/a><\/strong> are on the same side of the ice, which is of course, the opposite side that Horvat is on. Pietrangelo and Gunnarsson both appear to try to catch up to him, but they are not quite quick enough. Gunnarsson sticks out his stick just a little too late and Horvat scores.<\/p>\n<p>2019 Binnington may have been able to stop this breakaway shot, but 2020 Binnington gave up a few soft goals so there was no chance for him on this one. Regardless of how Binnington played though, the Blues defence hung him out to dry on multiple occasions.<\/p>\n<h3>The Bad<\/h3>\n<p>Here is another example with two different defencemen. This one is the Game 3 game-tying goal with <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/a\/allenja01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jake Allen<\/a><\/strong> in net. The Blues were able to win this game, but this is another example of how badly the defence played.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Not exactly how you want to defend Elias Pettersson imo <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7GLPWxt0iZ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/7GLPWxt0iZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PeteBlackburn\/status\/1295212469745590272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">August 17, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Here, Blues defencemen <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/s\/scandma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Marco Scandella<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/p\/parayco01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Colton Parayko<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>seem to\u00a0get their sticks tangled up trying to get the puck. While Scandella is in the process of turning around and trying to clear the puck, Vancouver forward <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/r\/roussan01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Antoine Roussel<\/a><\/strong> is able to grab the puck and pass it back to Pettersson. The rookie sensation can skate right up to Allen because Parayko is lying on his stomach watching Pettersson with the puck. Parayko tries to get up fast enough, but fails and Scandella just watches Pettersson score, barely skating towards him.<\/p>\n<p>From up close, it seems like Allen could have been able to stop the shot if he was just a little quicker to raise his blocker.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Hilarious goal <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/BWUV5u9Awt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/BWUV5u9Awt<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PeteBlackburn\/status\/1295212811266732034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">August 17, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>But, he would not have had to try to stop that shot if his defencemen would have been doing their job. If Parayko would have covered Pettersson instead of lying on the ice on his stomach and putting his stick out in front of Pettersson as if that would have accomplished anything, Allen might not have had to try to make a save anyway.<\/p>\n<p>The Canucks have a few very talented players, yet they still would have been no match if they played the 2019 Blues. When the Blues were actually playing well, they beat teams that were even more talented than Vancouver.<\/p>\n<p>As head coach <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/b\/berubcr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Craig Berube<\/a><\/strong> said after the series was over, &#8220;I&#8217;m not taking anything away from Vancouver. They&#8217;re a good young team, but we just gave them goals.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.ca\/detail\/1267612234\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 67.676765% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/1267612234?et=2pKeLJ0CRGtH_HM_tlgnlA&amp;tld=ca&amp;sig=QKDbwsKwUABSl88NoDwaQTz5PTYdSM8YFyIj-RqLPzs=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"402\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While the St. Louis Blues&#8216; goaltending certainly was an issue in the playoffs, it was not the biggest issue. The biggest issue by far was how easy it seemed it was for the Vancouver Canucks top scorers like Elias\u00a0Peterson, Bo Horvat\u00a0and J.T. Miller\u00a0to make the St Louis Blues defence look like it belonged in the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2202,"featured_media":84131,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32,4547,4548],"tags":[2616,789,564,747,718,375,932,1630,250,3759,1112,2138],"class_list":["post-84097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blues","category-hockey","category-nhl","tag-alex-pietrangelo","tag-antoine-roussel","tag-bo-horvat","tag-carl-gunnarsson","tag-colton-parayko","tag-craig-berube","tag-elias-pettersson","tag-j-t-miller","tag-jake-allen","tag-jordan-binnington","tag-marco-scandella","tag-quinn-hughes"],"modified_by":"Dan Mount, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2202"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84097\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}