Are The Blues Fading?

The St. Louis Blues are seeming to fade from being a contender for the playoffs, and last night's loss against the Sharks just proved that point. You could very well say last season was the statement for this team. That's only unless they go on a roll.

Right now, though, this team is going through tough times as they lost 2-0 against the Sharks on Thursday night at SAP Center. Going into this game, the Blues' playoffs chances were growing dimmer and last night's game just showed the reason why they could miss out on the playoffs entirely.

It's not the Blues that have problems, though. The Sharks needed this game just as badly and were holding off the LA Kings and Calgary Flames in the Pacific Division. However, both teams realized this game could make or break their season, assuming it trends the way it did last night.

In this case, both teams had great energy and great play from the get-go, but the Sharks were the ones that went after the puck early and often. Thanks in part to reliable goalie Jake Allen, he kept the puck out of the net for the first two periods, filling in for an injured Carter Hutton. To many fans of the Blues, it's surprising for Allen to be this consistent, especially in this game, and keep it 0-0 going into the third period.

Unfortunately for the Blues, the offense couldn't get anything going. They more likely wanted to keep the game even instead of trying to attack Martin Jones. They only got 16 shots on him. Yes, they did have some energy but it seemed to die out after the Sharks scored the first goal in the third period. After that, they were deflated, with no energy and no way to get to Martin Jones. It was basically terrible from that point forward.

I'll give the Blues credit for one thing: They had effort. Their season was most likely on the line in this game and they had to go out and prove they can still be in it. Jake Allen proved he's still reliable when called on and allowed the Blues to keep it even through two periods, before the big fallout.

Right now, the Blues sit four points out of a Wild Card spot to get in, but with the way the teams in front of them have been playing, it's going to be hard to see the Blues actually squeezing in there. So the game may have just sealed their fate, or at least give the teams in front of them a bit of an advantage. So right now, every game is crucial for the Blues and they can't afford to have a lot of losses between now and April. If so, they miss. If they win, they may be in. However, with the way things looked like last night, giving up the goal in the third deflated this team, and if that's the attitude they have for the rest of the way, it's going to be a non-playoff-season for St. Louis.