Who could halt the Blues’ Stanley Cup charge?

Thursday night’s victory over the Chicago Blackhawks saw St Louis secure the Central Division title for the first time since 2011-12, and only the ninth time in their history. The narrow 2-1 win – secured with goals from Dimitrij Jaskin and Paul Stastny – ensured that the Blues finished above Nashville Predators and Calgary Flames and were unable to be caught with just one game remaining. Having sacrificed the Divisional title to the Colorado Avalanche last year after enduring a six game losing streak, sealing the division with one game remaining will be particularly satisfying for the Blues fans.

Heading into the playoffs St Louis will be confident of making a real impression. Having lost out in the quarter finals for the last two years – once to the Kings and once to the Blackhawks – and having never won the Stanley Cup, the Blues may not find themselves amongst the betfair favorites this time around, but they are on a great run of form. On February 24th the Blues found themselves nine points off the pace set by the Predators and a run to the title looked improbable, particularly given the Blues poor end of season run last year. With twelve wins in their next 21 games, however, the Blues pulled themselves right back into contention and will now be looking forward to the play-offs with relish. Ken Hitchcock’s men will know that they have a long way to go, however, if they are to reach the finals in June. In this article we look at the teams gunning to prevent St Louis winning the Western Conference Championship for the first time and consider the men that could have a big impact on the challenge for a Stanley Cup final place.

Calgary Flames

First up are the Calgary Flames who, under coach Bob Hartley, are set to make a return to the Stanley Cup play-offs after securing a wild card berth with a 3-1 win over the LA Kings, Having begun a rebuilding job back in 2013, shipping out veterans Jarome Iginla and Jay Bouwmeester the Flames were always going to take a couple of years to re-ignite but, in this campaign, they have begun to show what they are capable of. The Flames have shown faith in their young players, giving the likes of Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau the opportunity to shine on the biggest stage. At just 20 and 21 years of age respectively, the two have really stepped up to the mark and Monahan, in particular, looks to be a real threat going forward. Having scored over 30 goals and been credited with over 30 assists already this season, he will be a man to watch in the play off picture.

For such a young team, the Flames have shown surprising resilience throughout 2015 and proven themselves to be particularly hard to beat. They may have fallen behind early in a number of key games but they have gone on to show that they have the mental strength to comeback and overcome adversity – the Flames have recorded 13 wins so far this season after being behind after the first period, they have also won 10 games after trailing going into the third. The Flames clearly have belief in their ability and they have the fitness to keep playing until the end. At this stage Calgary may not have the experience or quality to mount a Stanley Cup challenge but they are certainly a team to look out for in 2016.

Winnipeg Jets

The Winnipeg Jets may have sneaked into the play off picture through the backdoor, recording a 1-0 shootout defeat to the Avalanche and relying on the Flames to beat the Kings in order to seal their Wildcard spot but, nevertheless, they are there. Having been denied NHL hockey between 1996 and 2011, the Winnipeg fans have greeted the team’s first qualification for the play-offs with unbridled joy and whatever the outcome of their season, 2014-15 will go down in history for the Jets. The play-off qualification is richly deserved by head coach Paul Maurice who joined the franchise in January 2014. Having coached in the NHL since 1995 and racked up over 1200 games in charge, Maurice has just one Stanley Cup final to show for his efforts – a run with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2001-02.

The Jets remain a real outside shot for glory this season but if they are to make an impression on the play offs then goalie Ondrej Pavelec looks certain to play a big part. Having fallen out of favor earlier in the season, the 27-year-old Czech who has been with the franchise since it reformed, now looks to have cemented his place with impressive performances in recent wins over Minnesota and the Blues. Indeed, in the Jets’ three most recent games on the road Pavelec failed to concede a single goal. Stats fans will point out that his save average has fallen steadily over the last three seasons from .906 to.901, and that in 2014 he conceded an average of 3.01 goals per game against an average of 2.91 in 2012, but you can’t say that he is not in red hot form at the moment. Pavelec saved 83 shots without conceding in his last three games – if the Jets are to put up a challenge in the play-offs then he will need to keep putting up that kind of a fight.

Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks have endured a couple of difficult seasons since reaching the Stanley Cup final in 2010-11. The team won the Divisional Championship in 2011-12 and 2012-13 but their play off form has been disappointing, failing to make it past the quarter finals in either of those seasons; last season the Canucks missed out on the play-offs all together. Despite this indifferent form, expectations remain high in British Columbia that the Canucks can finally lift their first Stanley Cup this year. Having defeated the Coyotes 5-0 to cement a play off berth, the first step towards that elusive goal has been taken.

If the Blues find themselves up against the Canucks in the play-offs then it is clear where the Vancouverites’ main threats will come from – the familiar faces of the Sedin twins. The two ginger Swedes have become synonymous with hockey in Vancouver in recent years and Henrik has risen to become the Canucks captain. Between them the 34-year-old pairing have scored 37 goals in their first 81 regular season games this term and were credited with 108 assists – the key to stopping the Canucks is to manage the Sedin brothers. Getting on the end of many of the assists by the Sedins has been Radim Vrbata who has enjoyed an outstanding season, scoring 31 goals since coming north from the Phoenix Coyotes.

Minnesota Wild

Minnesota Wild coach Mike Yeo may claim that he is focusing on the remaining regular season games, and that he hasn’t given much thought to who his side will face in the play-offs, but the excitement around the franchise is palpable. Having been formed in 1997 and joined the NHL in 2000-01, there is a feeling that the Wild are beginning to build as a force. After winning the divisional championship in 2007-08 and reaching the Conference quarter finals, the Wild fans have since endured four seasons without qualification for the play-offs. In the last two campaigns, however, they reached the Conference quarter finals then the Conference semi-finals – they will be hopeful of going at least one better this year.

Throughout this season, the Wild have relied upon 30-year-old left winger Zach Parise for goals. Now in his third season with the franchise, he has already scored on 32 occasions and is ready for more success. The two-time Olympian will miss games ahead of the play-offs due to what has been described as a ‘nagging‘ injury but he will hope to be fresh for the final push. Parise has the pedigree and the ability to lead the Wild to great things this year and if the Blues find themselves up against Minnesota, then they will do well to keep him under wraps.

Chicago Blackhawks

The Blues’ most recent victims, the Chicago Blackhawks have real play-off pedigree. The five time Stanley Cup winners, most recently in 2012-13, have made the play-offs every year since 2007-08 and expectations will be high for further success this year. Having lost out in the Conference finals to the LA Kings last time out, they will be looking to go at least one better this year.

Central to the Blackhawks play-off push will be the returning Patrick Kane. The 26-year-old suffered a broken clavicle on February 24th and hasn’t played since, but he is now back on the ice and reports suggest that he is ready to take full contact and could return imminently. Having lost three on the spin, the Hawks will need a lift going into the play-offs and the return of Kane, who scored 27 goals and made 37 assists in his first 61 games of the season, could provide just that. Having won the Stanley Cup twice, including scoring the winning goal in 2010, the four time NHL all star is certainly the man that anyone coming against the Blackhawks must counter.

Nashville Predators

Having been edged out in the race for the divisional title by the Blues, the Predators will be hoping that they get the opportunity to take revenge on St Louis in the play-offs. The last two seasons have ended in disappointment for the Predators, failing to reach the play-offs on either occasion after making it to the Conference semi-finals in consecutive years in 2010-11 and 2011-12. The failure to secure play-off hockey last season saw the removal of Barry Trotz as head coach and since then Peter Laviolette has set about reshaping the team and attempting to bring glory to the Bridgestone Arena.

Having won the 2006 Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes, Laviolette knows what is required to bring home the biggest trophy in hockey but he knows that he can’t deliver success on his own. The Predators will look towards defenseman Shea Weber to lead their charge. The Canadian has been with the Predators since 2005-06 and is a crowd favorite with the team’s fans. Weber is a talisman at the back for the Predators and is central to their defensive efforts – finding a way to destabilize him and expose goalie Pekka Rinne will be key to any team that finds itself drawn against the Predators.

Anaheim Ducks

Since being founded in 1993 the Anaheim Ducks have developed progressively and are now a staple of the NHL post season. Having failed to reach the play-offs in seven of their first nine seasons, they made the post season in 9 of the following 12 campaigns, winning the Stanley Cup in 2006-07. Last time out the Ducks were defeated 4-3 in the Conference quarter finals by the Kings and they will be desperate to go further this time out. Having clinched the Pacific division they are looking well set to make a real challenge.

Should the Blues find themselves up against the Ducks one of the major threats that they will need to counter will be right wing Corey Perry. The 29-year-old, who has been with the Ducks since being drafted in 2003 and was a Stanley Cup winner in 2007, is a constant threat in attack and has proved to be one of the most consistent finishers in the competition. His total of 33 goals in his first 66 games of this season may not quite be on a par with his best effort of 50 goals in the 2010-11 season but his shooting percentage this season (17.3%) is the best that it has ever been and he will be keen to make a real mark on the play-offs.