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GDT: WCF Game 1 Blues vs Sharks 7PM NBCSN

1 by CaptSMRT

LINK

Blues reunite 'STL Line' ahead of Game 1 vs. Sharks
Schwartz, Tarasenko, Lehtera together again after St. Louis played matchups in second round
by Louie Korac / NHL.com Correspondent
May 14th, 2016 Share

Game 1: SHARKS at BLUES

Western Conference Final

TV: 8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports

The St. Louis Blues and San Jose Sharks play in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday, each continuing their pursuit of their first Stanley Cup.

"One of these four teams (remaining) is going to win the Cup, and we're thinking in this room, 'Why not us?'" Blues captain David Backes said. "And we're going to go out there and put the work in to do everything we can to take care of what we can control."

The Blues reached the conference final by defeating the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in seven games before knocking out the No. 1 seed in the West, the Dallas Stars, in seven games in the second round.

St. Louis is vying for a spot in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1970.

"There's four teams left. All four teams are really committed to their games. They're different," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. "For me, two teams that play similar play in the East (the Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins). and two teams that play similar play in the West. Both of us are pretty committed to a pretty similar game and both have found success playing a certain way, and it just happens to be that the two teams that play in the West, it has a lot of familiarities to each other. Pittsburgh and Tampa [Bay] the same way. They're built a little different than us and San Jose are, and they play the same way, almost the identical way to each other.

"Interesting dynamic, but I think all of us know we've got our hands full and we expect it with four teams left that these are the four most committed teams. There's not going to be any surprises out there."

The Sharks have played two fewer playoff games than the Blues. San Jose defeated the Los Angeles Kings in the first round in five games before knocking out the Nashville Predators in seven games in the second round.

San Jose is vying for a spot in the Cup Final for the first time.

"Every step to the Stanley Cup is a little tougher," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. "There's only four teams left. You look at (the Blues') regular season, 107 points, and dealing with the injuries they dealt with, they probably could have had 115 if they had stayed healthy. It's a big test for us. We're going to go in and throw our best game at them and see what happens."

This is the fifth time the Blues and Sharks have played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Each team has won two series, with the Blues winning the most recent in 2012 in five games in the first round.

Sharks team scope: Forwards Matt Nieto (undisclosed) and Joel Ward (maintenance) did not practice Saturday. DeBoer said Ward will play in Game 1, but Nieto is day-to-day after missing Game 7 of the second round against the Predators. "Getting better every day," DeBoer said. "So we'll see. It's day-to-day. We'll see how he feels [Sunday] and make some decisions." DeBoer wouldn't disclose a lineup switch but there's a chance Patrick Marleau could center the third line to offset the Blues' depth. Marleau has been used in that spot in the playoffs.

Blues team scope: Hitchcock went back with a familiar lineup combination during practice Saturday, moving center Jori Lehtera between Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko on the "STL Line" and putting Alexander Steen back with Patrik Berglund and Backes. "I'm not sure why I did that, but it seemed like a good idea at the time, so ... I don't know," Hitchcock said. "We just feel like from a chemistry standpoint, Lehtera and Tarasenko and Schwartz have had good chemistry. Because of the way Dallas' lines were formulated, we needed a different mix in our first two lines and we found it. But I think going back, this line combination makes us more comfortable."

Re: GDT: WCF Game 1 Blues vs Sharks 7PM NBCSN

7 by Ozzies09tc
CaptSMRT wrote:
Ozzies09tc wrote:I'm only 31 so i never got to witness the monday night miracle

If we win just two games this round, they will be the greatest team i ever got to witness.

I'm soo pumped!!
It's Sunday night.
What time zone are you in?

Currently it's still sunday afternoon where I reside.
Now now, the Canadian Government has apologized for Bryan Adams on SEVERAL occasions!

Re: GDT: WCF Game 1 Blues vs Sharks 7PM NBCSN

11 by BlueinNy
As the sky spits snow I am surprisingly calm sitting in my chair, surreal almost. 8 more wins and what we've all been praying for, for so long comes to fruition. The boys have slain the Dragon in the first round and took the highest scoring team behind the wood shed in game seven of round two. What could the carp have that they haven't seen this year? Nothing. Blues 4-2 LGB

Re: GDT: WCF Game 1 Blues vs Sharks 7PM NBCSN

12 by BlueinNy
As the sky spits snow I am surprisingly calm sitting in my chair, surreal almost. 8 more wins and what we've all been praying for, for so long comes to fruition. The boys have slain the Dragon in the first round and took the highest scoring team behind the wood shed in game seven of round two. What could the carp have that they haven't seen this year? Nothing. Blues 4-2 LGB

Re: GDT: WCF Game 1 Blues vs Sharks 7PM NBCSN

22 by Robb_K
The Blues have looked good so far, skating with energy, and getting some good chances. The refs are not calling anything. The Blues had 2 good chances ruined by a Shark interfering with the Blue who was setting up to receive the pass.

The Blues' defence is keeping The Sharks from getting room in the middle.

Berglund scores, but the goal is washed out, despite Vlasic hit it in his own net. Now, The Blues are challenging the washout, but it is upheld. Now The Blues have lost their timeout.
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