Avalanche At Blues Morning Open Thread: Full Steen Ahead

You could say that the Blues' homestand has been kind of successful. They've gotten 9 out of 10 possible points, Ken Hitchcock passed Pat Quinn to be the fifth winningist coach of all time (four out of the top five have coached for the Blues), Brian Elliott is one off of the franchise lead for shutouts, and Alexander Steen's scoring streak is up to eight games. And hey! They finally caught the Blackhawks and passed them for second in the division. It's nice to gain ground for once.

So far, so good. Tonight's game is the last before the All Star Break for the Blues, and the second to last on this season-long seven game homestand. The Colorado Avalanche have started playing reallly decent hockey as of late, going 6-2-2 in their last ten games. They've hit the same problem that the Blues have had this season, though - the teams in front of them keep winning. Still, this isn't a lost season for the Avalanche anymore. They're right on the cusp of that last wild card spot.

This is your morning open thread. Check back later for the final piece of Rick's Sweden Saga, your preview, some other gameday stuff, and your GDT. Head over to Mile High Hockey while you're waiting to see if they're just excited for the national broadcast as the rest of us are.