The St. Louis Blues continued their winning ways on Monday night, defeating the Minnesota Wild 4-2 at Enterprise Center. Pavel Buchnevich (3), Jake Neighbours (3), Nathan Walker (1), and Klim Kostin (1) each netted goals in the contest, while Jordan Binnington started in the crease and stopped all 11 shots in the two periods he played. Joel Hofer took over in the third period, stopping 13 of 15 shots and nearly scored a goal of his own late in the period.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Blues’ 4-2 Victory Over the Wild – 10/4/22
Next up for the Blues is a quick trip to Ohio to take on the Columbus Blue Jackets. After falling to the Washington Capitals on Monday, they now sit at 3-2-1 in the preseason. Tonight marks the second and final time the Blues and Blue Jackets will face off before they see each other for the Blues’ season opener on Oct. 15.
St. Louis Blues Projected Lineup
Forwards
- Jake Neighbours – Ryan O’Reilly – Jordan Kyrou
- Nathan Walker – Nikita Alexandrov – Josh Leivo
- Klim Kostin – High McGing – Will Bitten
- Matthew Highmore – Matthias Laferriere – Martin Frk
Defense
- Calle Rosen – Matthew Kessel
- Steven Santini – Robert Bortuzzo
- Tyler Tucker – Brady Lyle
Goalies
- Thomas Greiss – Joel Hofer
Columbus Blue Jackets Projected Lineup
Forwards
- Johnny Gaudreau – Boone Jenner – Patrick Laine
- Yegor Chinakhov – Jack Roslovic – Jakub Voracek
- Kent Johnson – Cole Sillinger – Justin Danforth
- Mathieu Olivier – Sean Kuraly – Liam Foudy
Defense
- Zach Werenski – Adam Boqvist
- Vladislav Gavrikov – Andrew Peeke
- Jake Bean – Erik Gudbranson
Goalies
- Daniil Tarasov – Jet Greaves
Quick Look at the Blue Jackets
The Blues will be getting their second look at the Blue Jackets tonight; however, it will be the first time facing them with Johnny Gaudreau in the lineup. With him and many other expected starting forwards in the lineup tonight (Laine, Jenner, Voracek, Rolslovic, Johnson, Sillinger) as well as the entirety of their anticipated NHL defensive unit, it appears that Columbus is gearing up for the start of the regular season.
Players to Watch
St. Louis Blues: Jake Neighbours & Josh Leivo
Jake Neighbours and Josh Leivo are each having solid preseasons for the Blues and are possibly in a battle for one of the few remaining spots on the roster. Neighbours has scored four points (3 goals, 1 assist) in four contests while Leivo has posted slightly better numbers in his four games (2 goals, 3 assists). Head coach Craig Berube had this to say about Leivo’s performance after Tuesday’s victory over the Wild:
“He’s got a lot of good details to his game. Strong on pucks. He makes little subtle plays with the puck, whether it’s coming out of our end or in the offensive zone. And he’s got a good nose for the net, and he finds open icy very well in the offensive zone” (from ‘Josh Leivo, Jake Neighbours strengthen their cases for roster spots with the Blues’, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 10/5/22).
Columbus Blue Jackets: Johnny Gaudreau, Boone Jenner, Patrik Laine
With team captain Boone Jenner set to make his preseason debut, the Blues Jackets will be fielding what could be their top line of Gaudreau, Jenner, and Laine for the first time. This isn’t going to be a position battle to watch, rather it’ll be a chance for the fans in Columbus, as well as others around the NHL, to see if there’s any on-ice chemistry between arguably their three best forwards. Even if tonight goes well for this line, it’s possible one of Gaudreau or Laine finds themselves on the second line to try to spread out the scoring. Either way, for tonight, this is an exciting trio to keep an eye on.
Where You Can Catch the Game
St. Louis Blues @ Columbus Blue Jackets – 6:00 PM CST
For fans in the St. Louis area wishing to watch this game, unfortunately, this matchup will not be broadcasted or streamed via cable or through Bally Sports. However, it will be streamed live on the Blues’ website or through the official Blues App (U.S. only). If you’re wishing to travel or find yourself in the Columbus, OH area, tickets are still available. Finally, you can always catch the action live on the radio via 101 ESPN or the 101 ESPN app.