The revolving doors on the St Louis roster has made it tough times for Blue fans lately. The last I read, Carlo Colaiacovo was close to coming back, and with Ian Cole being sent back to Peoria, this could be an indication that we're due to see some familiar faces again. In the meantime, this is providing meaningful employment to the "Hello, My Name Is ______" sticker manufacturers. At least the Peoria boys know each other.
If nothing else, dealing with these difficulties will keep the players grounded. It's hard to get too cocky when you keep losing teammates. So far, we've been able to promote from within, and ice a competitive team. The front office has indicated that they are not looking to hire any free agents to fill holes in the lineup. Not that it couldn't be an option at some point.
For now, though, it's just one substitute after another...
The Enemy: After a European debut and then a slow start, things are beginning to click for the 6-5-5 Phoenix Coyotes. The ownership situation has stabilized, and they can start focusing on, you know, hockey now. The 'Yotes are coming off two wins in a row, including one just last night against Cal and Gary. They've already had 3 different players get hat-tricks, including last night's hero Vernon Fiddler. Former Blue Lee Stempniak leads the team in goals, with 5, and shares the points lead with 3 others at 9. Ilya Bryzgalov (2.92 / .910) is the usual starter, but having played last night, we might see Jason LaBarbera (3.46 /.900) tonight. And with all that, the most popular player on the team is most usually a healthy scratch: Paul Bissonnette. A role player with 61 career games under his belt might be the key example of how the NHL instructs players how to (or not to) use Twitter. If you are a hockey fan, and are on Twitter, you already know about BizNasty2point0. Here's an intro for the unitiated.
Further Reading:
Blues vs Coyotes coverage
The puck drops at 7:00 PM St Louis time. The GDT will be around shortly beforehand. Until then, this is your pregame preparty. TV has it on FoxSports MW, and radio on KMOX 1120AM. Gather here, get to know our own new faces (more every game, it seems), and express your gratitude that at least Phoenix has rid themselves of their old logo, the Peyote Coyote. Damn that was terrible (or, turrible, if you've ever played basketball in PHX).
Shout Out: Whoever maintains the RomanP46 feed ... one would think that being on IR would free up some time to tweet. Just Sayin'.
Enjoy a BizNasty fight vid:
LGB!
-CrossCheckRaise
UPDATE: It looks like Conklin in goal tonight, according to Twitter sources