BLUES The St. Louis Blues are eager to return to the ice, fresh off their 11-day break surrounding All-Star Weekend. Robert Thomas represented the franchise well among the NHL's best players, teaming up with Connor McDavid for a runner-up finish in the 3-on-3 All-Star Game tournament.
Thomas leads the Blues outright with 35 assists and 52 points, sharing the team lead with 17 goals. At this scoring rate, Thomas is on pace to reach a career-high 87 points by the end of the season.
With the Blues holding on to a tightly-contested Western Conference Wild Card Playoff spot, they will have to keep up their high level of play that they closed out the pre-All-Star Break stretch with. Aside from a 1-0 loss to Columbus in the final game before the break, the Blues had won five straight games to surge back into postseason contention.
Trailing the Top 3 in the division by at least 11 points, the Blues' focus will likely have to be on fighting back the other Wild Card contenders. Below the Blues in the standings are the Predators, even in points but down two games in hand; Calgary, down by one point; and Seattle, down by two.
Pavel Buchnevich, who had been on a cold spell in getting pucks into the net, returned to form to help spark the win streak. After scoring just one goal in the previous 13 games, Buchnevich put up four goals and two assists in three straight overtime wins against Vancouver, Seattle and Los Angeles.
The Blues begin their post-All-Star run on the road, playing three games in Eastern Conference arenas before a four-game homestand. Visiting Buffalo on Saturday afternoon, the Blues rapidly turn around to Montreal for a Sunday afternoon matchup before wrapping up the trip in Toronto.
The Blues visit Buffalo with a record of 26-21-2, worth 54 points and fourth in the Central Division.
