The St. Louis Blues are reportedly attempting to take a page - or three - from the Chicago Blackhawks' manual in order to overcome their recent postseason impotency. The Blues, after being bounced early from the playoffs four years running despite putting together phenomenal regular seasons are reportedly looking to employ a defensive approach similar to that of the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Stanley Cup-champion Blackhawks.
"Both Chicago and Tampa made it to the Stanley Cup Final with aggressive defenses, keeping gaps tight and challenging at the opposition blueline. So, with that success, a couple of teams not really known for it are trying the idea. One is St. Louis, and a reason both Joel Edmundson and Colton Parayko made the opening roster is they did it well," Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.
While only one of Parayko or Edmundson is likely to suit up for the Blues and head coach Ken Hitchcock on a given night, there's no denying their prowess at playing such a game. But as Friedman notes, it's an inherently risky style of play. Doubly so for a St. Louis team that has too-often played it safe in recent seasons.
This, per Friedman, is another approach the Blues are looking to discard, this "conservative" label. Whether it works or not and whether this aggressive defensive scheme is the cure-all for whatever ails the Blues remains to be seen, but there's no denying that a St. Louis team that boasts the likes of Alex Pietrangelo, Jay Bouwmeester, David Backes, Jori Lehtera and the rising star that is Vladimir Tarasenko, should be competing for the Cup each and every season.
Can the Blues forwards, especially young ones like Lehtera and Tarasenko, read the play correctly and step in when the defense goes on the attack?
