By Chris Gift
It seems like just hours ago that the Blues were about to start a five-game road trip with a game at Anaheim, ready to work out the kinks on the road and come home with a little bit of good karma.
Paul Kariya's lower body injury eliminates any of that good karma crap, at least for now.
The game starts at 9:30 central time, and I'll be guiding you through the first period.
What we know so far about the game tonight is...
- St. Louisan Ben Bishop is the starting goaltender, with Chris Mason backing up (expect Manny Legace to play Saturday night in Los Angeles).
- According to our friend Jeremy Rutherford of the Post-Dispatch, the hasn't been a player recalled from Peoria to replace Kariya. That means the team will either dress seven defensemen (not likely) or David Koci will make his Blues debut. Hmmm, Jody Shelly plays for the Sharks. I wonder if Mr. Koci and Mr. Shelly will have a go at it tonight?
- Also according to JR, Andy Murray has said that in Kariya's absence look for Andy McDonald to see more ice, with a few other players being double shifted as well.
- The Blues will be without Kariya- who has returned to St. Louis to have his injured lower body examined, and TJ Oshie- his high ankle is still sprained. I don't know about the rest of you, but I have a left ankle and a right ankle, not a high one and a low one.
- San Jose is really, really good (11-2-0), and lately the Blues have been really, really bad (going 1-5-0 after starting 4-1)
- The Sharks are 12-1-1 against the Blues since January of 2004
- The Sharks had a crappy uniform with lots of teal in it. When everybody redesigned their uniforms, San Jose did the logical thing- added more teal and a bit of orange just for good measure.
The puck drops at 9:30, I'll see everybody back at around 9:29 and a half.
********* And away we go ************
For the record, Gallagher has a hockey game tonight (we aren't blogging that one), and Brad is doing the crazy thing of actually parenting (his kid, believe it or not), so I'll be doing this for a while and one of the other Boyes will take over at some point.
I'll be too busy counting votes in Missouri to see if we're red or blue- like it matters.
9:19 pm- Do these pregame shows get cheesier and cheesier? How about starting the broadcast about five minutes before the game and getting on with it.
I think this feature I'm half paying attention to is the same one I paid 1/4 attention to last night about the same time.
Cam Jannsen wants to meet Elvis. If Elvis is still alive, I'm guessing he's not living too far from Eureka.
David Backes had a Mighty Ducks poster in his room when he was a kid. That question is almost appropriate for tonight, considering they're playing San Jose. It would have been great last night- wait, it wasn't great last night either.
9:24- Good to see Bishop spent his time while he was injured getting his mask painted. I guess he's a big Billy Corgan or Uncle Fester fan.
Okay, enough bullshitting, here are the lines, according to FSMidwest (or whatever they're calling themselves this week)
Tkachuk-McDonald-Boyes
Stempniak-McClement-Backes
Hinote-Berglund-Perron
Koci (wearing #33)-Stastny-Janssen (God help us on this line)
On defense:
Brewer-Wagner
Jackman-Pietrangelo
McKee-Pola'k
Tonight's Roman Pola'k joke: What do you call a cute girl in Poland? A tourist.
Hey Chris D, fellow Red Devil, can you keep track of how many times they mention CCP tonight? Pat Parris said it once already.
Looks like Dooks' favorite TV celebrity, Skeletor, isn't on the Dobbs' commercials this season. I feel for you, Dooks.
It'll be interesting to see how much ice the fourth line as it is drawn up on paper gets. I expect to see a crapload of double shifts.
19:43- This camera is mounted on Mars. If it were any higher (insert your own Bay Area hippie joke here.)
18:02- Sharks new coach Todd McClellan was handed a Ferrari, Ron Wilson couldn't get it in gear and with McClellan's Detroit background, I see a long playoff run for these teal wearing pansies.
17:00- Perron and Koci on the ice together, so much for those lines.
15:23- I'm not expecting much tonight, but a powerplay goal to start off would be nice.
Sharks Penalty- Rob Blake, 2:00 for looking too much like a young Bob Hope
14:46- Goal Blues- Federko actually made a good point about the Blues standing around too much on the 5 on 3. Tkachuk from Stempniak and Pietrangelo
I'm assuming that Brewer isn't on the PP tonight because he's been playing a bunch of minutes lately, and JD was on Bernie's show today saying that Brewer hasn't been playing well.
Luckily Bernie and Jay, Jr. did a good job of interviewing JD and not completely kissing his ass, like they do sometimes on 1380.
13:47- There's Brewer on the PP, Chris. Second unit, where he should be.
13:30- Holy Shit, another GOAL- Stempniak from Berglund and Perron. Let's all raise a glass for Dutchie's first of the season. One down 91 to go. Somewhere Wayne Gretzky is nervous.
12:32- Up 2, on the road, good move by Murray to send out the 4th line, San Jose is bound to try to stir the pot a little here.
11:54- It has been so long since Stempniak scored, he's going to give Jamal Mayers credit for the great pass.
11:24- When Mike Grier was in the Blues' system, I sure thought he'd be more than a journeyman third/fourth line player his entire career.
Simple math- Joe Thornton + wide open in the front of the net + rookie goalie = goal
10:11- Thornton from Marleau and Setoguchi (or some spelling like that) 2-1 Blues.
9:03- Without even looking at the comments, I know Chris D. is bitching about Brewer and Jackman being out on the ice for that goal. I chalk that goal up to Joe Thornton being a hell of a player, and his line being a hell of a line.
8:51- I heard booing, where's Chris Pronger?
7:21- Seeing "Pavilion" on the ice makes the place look much more elegant. I bet their bathrooms still smell like stale piss at the end of the game.
6:35- So far, the Blues are doing things to win the game. Powerplay goals (with Blake screwing up on the 2nd one that was close enough), killing penalties, winning faceoffs in San Jose's zone.
5:47- Did I just hear a TG Oshie from Federko?
5:27- Dear FSMidwest. GET THAT GOD DAMN FOOTBALL OUT OF THE WAY DURING A HOCKEY GAME.
Thank you.
4:30- One of the forwards needs to give Fragile Jay his stick.
2:51- How in the hell did the official that is four feet from the trip not call that?
1:27- Every time I see Joe Thornton, I wonder how close to getting him the Blues were. I know the answer is probably somewhere along the lines of "Neptune is closer than the Blues were to getting Thornton."
1:01- Good save from "the ladies' tees" by Bishop
0:21- How it isn't 2-2, I have no idea. The Blues were dead out there.
0:00- I'll get the second period up here in just a few.