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The New Jersey Devils probably didn’t envision this season playing out the way that it has. Right now they’re third to last in the Eastern Conference, five games under .500, and 3-6-1 in their last ten. Now Ray Shero, Devils GM, has to deny pesky Taylor Hall trade rumors.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and the Devils may be in hell this season.
The Blues have clawed their way up from there on the back of a six game winning streak. They’re in the first Wild Card spot in the West, 7-2-1 in their last 10, and finally at .500 at home. Jordan Binnington was named the league’s top star of the week for last week’s 3-0 run. And sure, they almost let two points slip away on Sunday, but Vladimir Tarasenko’s first hat trick of the season fixed that problem.
The only person that the winning streak isn’t helping is Robby Fabbri, because he’s not getting in to play any time soon. Tonight’s lineup is status quo, with Binnington in net. At some point, Fabbri will return, one assumes, but it won’t be until the Blues lose.
Even with games in hand on the rest of the conference, the race for the playoffs is close enough that the Blues can’t afford to take their foot off of the gas.