:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/48955425/usa-today-9143477.0.jpg)
Well, with the exception of the shit sandwich of a game we attended, the #EpicFeb road trip was a rousing success. We reconnected with old friends, made some new ones, drank, experienced some Nashville eats, and drank some more. Like, a lot. We did our own version of honky tonkin’. The actual hockey part, though… well, the best thing that can be said is that nobody got hurt, and we have another one today. Possible ficitious character Pheonix Copley is no longer standing in the shadows and finally got to play. Even better, Alex Pietrangelo has been activated from IR.
The Carolina Hurricanes were never expected to do much this year, but this season under Bill Peters is actually showing some results. They are still a lottery-pick team, but the Hurricanes have shown some structure and are laying down a foundation for the future. In the here-and-now though, they are 28-25-10 and 4-4-2 in their last ten. They’ve lost 2 in a row, and stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but the Canes have only scored 2 goals combined in those losses.
Not a surprise with a team on the rebuild, they are led in scoring by the youngsters. The kid once described as "the Justin Bieber of hockey", forward Jeff Skinner tops the team with 21 goals. Then there is Victor Rask, who turns 23 on Tuesday and has 36 points (14G, 22A). Defenseman Justin Falk is 23 and has 34 points (15G, 19A). He’s missed several games lately, and is not expected to play today. The "old man" of the offensive leaders is Jordan Staal. He leads in overall points with 39 (16G, 23). This young country team aren’t bumpkins. They can do some damage. This ain’t Dallas, though.
Here’s another case of deja vu: although Cam Ward has had a mediocre-at-best season (.909 Sv %), he’s heated up lately. The Yahoo preview lists this stat: "he's (Ward) still kept them in games by not allowing more than three goals since Dec. 8. The veteran is 9-6-4 with a 1.97 goals-against average in that time." So, he’s suddenly become the Man of Steel.
Swell.
Further Reading:
Blues vs Hurricanes coverage
GameDay Twitter Feed
Tweets from https://twitter.com/CrossCheckRaise/lists/gameday
Final Verse: Yet another damn matinee. We’ll see the puck drop at 2PM St Louis time. The GDT should drop shortly beforehand. Please pay us a visit and tell us you best/worst drinking stories. If nothing else, it’ll give us some misery-loves-company amusement. The TV broadcast is on Fox Sports MW, and the radio call is of course on KMOX 1120 AM. More than the game, stick with us if there are any major moves made.
LGB!!!