Blues At Colorado Avalanche Morning Open Thread: Jingle Goals

So far this road trip, the Blues have blown an opportunity against two teams that they usually blow opportunities to: the Kings and the Sharks. Does it make the blown leads and losses to these teams any less frustrating? No. Did the late start time and fact that most fans missed the late game deflation make those blown leads any less disappointing? No.

Does a win tonight against the Colorado Avalanche erase two thirds of a disappointing road trip? Eh, no, but it goes a long way to calming fans and the team down. Jeremy Rutherford did a balanced and excellent job laying out some issues on Sunday, pointing out that during the win streak the team was living on the edge (again) and that they need to take that extra step to shut down teams. The Avalanche started December slowly but are warming up. Since their overtime loss to the Blues on December 13th, the Avs have lost in OT to the Penguins, beaten the Sabres 5-1, and just defeated the Red Wings 2-1 in a shootout.

They may get Semyeon Varlamov back today as well. Varly's groin injury has kept him out of the crease since December 5th, where the Avs were curbstomped by the Jets 5-2. Since then, Rookie Calvin Picard has put together quite the run. According to the Denver Post, though, Patrick Roy feels the need to get his starter back in ASAP. That'll probably be tonight.

"It's not easy," Roy said Sunday after the Avs took down the Red Wings in Detroit with a 3-2 shootout victory.

"But let's not forget what Varly did for us last year. Varly played so well for us. He was the reason why we won our division."

Let's hope that the Blues can get Pickard back into one more game.

This is your morning open thread. Check back for some CCR Road Music, your preview, and a few other things. While you're waiting, see how the folks at Mile High Hockey are prepping themselves for the return of Varly and power-play dancing Blues fans.

Sorry, Pepsi Center. We don't like it either.