Ottawa Lawmakers @ Blues GDT

One win. Can't this band of Blues, this motley collection of formerly overachievers and AHL call-ups manage just one damn win right now?

I keep thinking that just one win could stem the flow of negativity and bad karma plaguing this team. Three of the top six defensemen have or continue to miss significant time because of injuring. Top point and goal producers among the forwards are out three months to indefinitely. Jaroslav Halak has had more than one night where he's channeled the ghost of Roman Turek. And yes, I know fatso isn't dead yet. He's seeing more rubber in his face than the girls at the Bunny Ranch on a busy Saturday night.

The only saving grace the next two nights for the Blues is their competition from the softer Eastern Conference. Sure the Ottawa Senators have 19 points, just two less than the Blues this season. But team from Canada's capital city (read Game Time, learn geography) have played 19 games, two more than St. Louis. Their record of 9-9-1 shows a little bit of feast or famine for the formerly formidable Senators.

It's been a rough week for the Senators. I hate to bring down the room for a second, but assistant coach Luke Richard's 14-year-old daughter committed suicide over the weekend. On Wednesday, the team attended a memorial service in the morning in Ottawa and then flew to Raleigh, N.C. to play the Hurricanes. The outcome was Blues-like, a 7-1 drubbing. That came after the Senators loss 5-1 to Philadelphia on Monday night. They arrived in St. Louis after the Carolina game and practiced here in St. Louis on Thursday. It's a horrible situation that no one wants to dwell on.

Sorry for the downer, but that's what the team is going through. Obviously they'll be trying to forget all that and win a hockey game tonight. And so shall the Blues.

This is your game day thread. Don't be afraid to bang bodies in the corner.