Parayko, Schenn, and Tarasenko are returning

If you watched last night’s Blues game and thought that the mistakes they were making were evidence of a tired team, that makes sense. It’s difficult to expect the Blues to consistently maintain a high level of play when regulars are out - and have been in and out - thanks to Covid-19 and injuries. They’ve carried that weight well so far, but teams have breaking points, and last night’s performance showed that in the defense and goaltending. Offensively, the team is better than they’ve been in ages, but if you score five goals in a game, the expectation is that you win.

Luckily, the Blues are getting support back tomorrow. Brayden Schenn, Vladimir Tarasenko, and defenseman Colton Parayko should be good to go for the Blues’ game against the Nashville Predators.

On top of that, Logan Brown also looks like he’s recovering well from his non-covid illness and could also be in tomorrow night.

This is a huge difference-maker against the Predators, who have had the Blues’ number for about four years now. The Preds sit in second place in the Central Division with 51 points, two points ahead of the Blues. If the Blues want to keep pace with Nashville and the first-place Colorado Avalanche, who have been making up ground and games, they’re going to have to find a way to be consistent. It’s tough to pull that off with constant interruptions, but I am sure that neither the Preds nor the Avalanche will cut the Blues any slack regardless of who is in the lineup.

Parayko returning will allow for he and Niko Mikkola to be re-paired together. It’s been a better pairing for Parayko than his time spent with Marco Scandella, certainly, but it will also allow for the kind of physicality on defense that will make Chris Pronger proud on his jersey retirement night.