GDT: Blues vs Sharks 9:30PM FSMW/KMOX

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Big Story: It doesn't take long for the tide to turn in a playoff series, and after seeing the Sharks wrest away home-ice advantage by winning the opening game in double overtime, the Blues have regained it by taking the next two -- most recently Game 3 in San Jose on Monday. Now, the Sharks find themselves in the position previously occupied by the Blues, needing to earn a split in their building to avoid going down two games. Their situation is even more dire, though, because a St. Louis victory on Thursday pushes San Jose to the brink of elimination with the series shifting back to Scottrade Center on Saturday.

Team Scope:

Blues: Having to switch your starting goalie in the postseason would be enough to throw many teams off kilter, but St. Louis was accustomed all season to alternating between Brian Elliott and Jaroslav Halak and winning games regardless of which one was in net. So when Halak was injured early in the second period of Game 2 and Elliott had to come in, the Blues just continued on their shutout way, tying up the series, and Elliott followed up with 26 saves in Monday's 4-3 win at HP Pavilion. Two of the goals came in the final 3:02 after the Blues had taken control of the game. Patrik Berglund, Jason Arnott and Alex Steen all connected on the power play, while Andy McDonald scored for the second consecutive game to pace the offense.

"We just do what we do," coach Ken Hitchcock said of the power play. "I don't think we get enough credit. If you look at our power play, I think we finished mid-pack, somewhere around there, but we made a heck of a climb because we were in 30th place and everybody was laughing at us around Christmas time, so we've made a heck of a climb since then. And I think our power play has been a threat now for almost 40 days. We've done good things."

Sharks: Giving up four goals to the team with the NHL's stingiest defense in the regular season isn't a recipe for success, and considering San Jose had the League's 29th-ranked penalty kill and has now given up five power-play goals in 13 times shorthanded in this series, the Sharks' first order of business in Game 4 needs to be to stay out of the penalty box. On the bright side, after managing just a Brent Burns power-play goal in over 96 minutes against Elliott, the offense got goals late from Colin White and Logan Couture to perhaps put a little crack in the façade of the netminder who finished first in goals-against average and save percentage.

"Panic? Absolutely no," defenseman Dan Boyle said in the San Jose Mercury News. "It's a series. … The next game is absolutely huge. We've got to come back, get the second win, and then we start over."

Who's Hot: Berglund now has three goals in the series, while McDonald leads the Blues with five points. … Sharks captain Joe Thornton assisted on all three of his team's goals on Monday.

Injury Report: Halak suffered a lower-body injury in Game 2 and didn't dress Monday as St. Louis recalled Jake Allen from the AHL. Halak remains day-to-day.

Stat Pack: Arnott's goal was the 32nd of his playoff career, with half coming on the power play. The Blues became the sixth different team he's recorded a postseason power-play goal for, joining the Oilers, Devils, Stars, Predators and Capitals. … White has scored on each of his last two playoff shots -- the previous one before Monday came as a member of the Devils, on April 16, 2010, in Game 2 of a first-round series against the Flyers. Prior to that, White didn't have a playoff goal since 2000.

Puck Drop: In spite of Thornton's trifecta of assists in Game 3, the top line for San Jose has yet to score a goal in the series. In fact, other than those Thornton helpers they haven't managed a point -- Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski still have all zeroes next to their names in the scoring columns. That's something else that must change for the Sharks to get back in this series.

"Obviously there's a time factor," Marleau said in the Mercury News. "We need to win. So we'd like to see some pucks start to go in. Once you do let pressure start to set in, it's over. So we need to focus on figuring this out."

Re: GDT: Blues vs Sharks 9:30PM FSMW/KMOX

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JRutherturd wrote:SAN JOSE, Calif. • Blues coach Ken Hitchcock prides himself on promoting the game of hockey. In the past two days, he's done a dandy job of selling the city of San Jose.

"They've got great tourist attractions, great golf courses, they've got everything," Hitchcock said. "We just don't want to do anything."

Some seventy hours have passed since the Blues hung on for a 4-3 win over the Sharks in Game 3 of the first round, giving them a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. The team practiced Wednesday after limiting Tuesday to an off-ice workout and a team dinner. Most of the players' time has been spent either milling around downtown San Jose or hanging out in a private lounge in the hotel.

"There's a TV and the playoff games are on," Blues forward T.J. Oshie said, describing the scene. "(David Perron) is on his computer, (Alex Steen) is playing music, and we've been playing cards. The cards get pretty heated. It seems like it's everyone against (B.J. Crombeen). He gets on guys when they make certain plays that help out other guys, and then when he makes them, it's fine. It's everyone vs. Beener."

Tonight, though, it finally will be the Blues vs. the Sharks, and while many agreed that the two days off has been re-energizing, the club is eager to resume the series.

"I said before the last game that it's too much time between games because you'd like to go back out there and not lose any edge that you had in the last game," Blues captain David Backes said. "You just sit around and think of ways to improve your game ... the things that haven't gone as well as we've liked. But two days is probably too much time to think about it."

The Blues are thrilled with their power play, which scored three goals in the win Monday and is five for 10 in the series. But at even strength, the Blues and San Jose have four goals apiece, which includes a four-on-four goal by the Sharks.

The Blues were second in the NHL in the regular season in five-on-five goals for and against (1.34), but they are sixth among the 16 playoff teams (1.33).

"In order to win the next game, we have to play better five on five," Hitchcock said. "I'm not looking for more offense. I'm looking for better play. ... We've had some really good stretches, but overall we need to play better period five on five. We can play better. It's better defensively, it's creating more ... it's playing with more consistent energy.

"Our power play has given us the little advantage in the series. But it's still going to end up being a series that five on five is going to win. Of the two teams, we're the team that has to improve the most five on five. Yes, we're up 2-1, but as the series goes, the games get to be more five on five. The spillage from Game 2 wasn't there (in Game 3) because both teams knew what was at stake. When you get two teams that are this close competing-wise, the penalties usually get fewer and fewer because you get to a point where you're afraid to take them."

The Blues lead by one game in the series, and some national media are declaring them the better team. After losing a double-overtime decision Game 1, the Blues outscored San Jose 7-1 in one stretch, starting with a 3-0 win in Game 2 and continuing with a 4-1 lead in Game 3.

But if the Sharks' late rally and the even-strength parity isn't enough to prevent the Blues from having a false sense of security, the Blues say climbing out of a one-game deficit earlier in the series is enough.

"Honestly, it's one game," Steen said. "It's the same thing I said after Game 1. It was a tough loss, but it was Game 1. It's a long series. If you start looking too far ahead, you lose focus on the task at hand. It's a cliché, but the teams that live and play by it, succeed. We won the last game. We thought we had a solid performance until the last few minutes. We'll make some adjustments and go right back at it for Game 4."

The Blues have had plenty of time to think about it the past two days.

"It gives the players an opportunity where they pause and reflect on how they're playing and physically rest up," Hitchcock said. "You're going to see the most energy in any of the games in the fourth game because both teams are going to be rested and ready to go."

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