The St. Louis Blues
dropped their second preseason game
in as many days to open the 2025-26 season with a 4-1 loss against
the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on Sunday.
Nikita
Alexandrov scored the lone Blues goal, assisted by Justin Carbonneau,
the 2025 first-round pick’s second point in as many days; he scored
the lone goal in a 2-1 shootout loss against the Dallas Stars on
Saturday.
Joel
Hofer played the first two periods and stopped 13 of 15 shots, and
Vadim Zherenko stopped five of six shots in the third period.
Blues
coach Jim Montgomery had this to say on Sunday morning about the
lineup prior to departing for Columbus:
“See
who’s going to start asserting themselves to wanting to make the
Blues team,” Montgomery said. “It’s really that basic, who can
show us the habits and details of [Nathan]
Walker
and
[Alexey]
Toropchenko,
who has that dogged determination that Holloway plays with, who is
the defenseman that is going to break up plays and look to jump and
go like [Colton]
Parayko
and
[Cam]
Fowler
and
[Justin]
Faulk
do.”
There
were some decent performances on Sunday but nothing that would make
the coach say, ‘That guy is ready to make the Blues team.’
Here
are some observations from the game:
*
Otto Stenberg – The 2023 first-round pick had himself a decent
game, logging 16:05 of ice time and really asserting himself with
some nice shifts, particularly in the first period when he set up two
strong scoring chances, went right to the net in his first shift,
which is where he will make his living and then making a crucial shot
block that obviously stung to thwart a solid scoring chance against.
Stenberg
started the game with Alexandrov and Mathieu Joseph and finished with
Carbonneau and Alexandrov, a sign that Montgomery was liking some of
the things he was seeing from the 20-year-old.
He
finished with two shots on five attempts, one hit and two blocked
shots, a game that can certainly be built on.
*
Justin Carbonneau – The well has been a bit dry for the Blues
offense, but Carbonneau has been part of each one thus far.
The
Blues were down 2-0 when he took a pass from Lucic after an initial
puck was rimmed around, spun at the top of the left circle and
whipped a shot to the net that Alexandrov tipped at 16:58 of the
second period to cut the Blues’ deficit to 2-1.
Carbonneau
played 17:33 and again displayed a penchant to shoot the puck, and
the more reps he gets, the better his career will begin in St. Louis.
He’s definitely showing signs that it won’t be terribly long
before No. 68 will be playing here regularly. Another game in which
he didn’t look out of place.
*
Adam Jiricek – What I like about the 2024 first-round pick, just
like Logan Mailloux on Saturday, is his shot-first mindset when the
puck is on his stick at the point.
Yes,
he was on the ice for the first two goals against, and one can make
the argument that when he pinched on the first goal by Brendan Gaunce
and missed, it created a 2-on-0, but there were other varying
differences that led to the sequence.
Jiricek
logged a team high 23:04 and had six shot attempts (two on goal) and
was also involved in a number of plays that were killed with his
stick.
Columbus
had multiple 2-on-1s and Jiricek was part of breaking up at least two
that I can remember. I thought he had himself a good game.
*
Joel Hofer/goaltending – Hofer and Zherenko picked up where Jordan
Binnington and Colten Ellis left off Saturday. Maybe not quite on par
since that duo stopped 33 of 34 in Dallas, but they made the saves
necessary to give their team a chance on Sunday and that’s all that
can be asked.
*
Milan Lucic – The 37-year-old veteran on a PTO had an assist, had a scoring chance moments later and
he did use his body to his advantage in 15:26 of ice time.
He’s
the type of guy you want to see in front of the net when Jiricek or
whoever is bringing pucks from the point, and there were moments but
not there could have been more. Seemed to get better as the game progressed.
*
Nick Bjugstad – It wasn’t a performance like Lucic that screamed,
‘Wow,’ but what will be important is that stat line of 10
face-off wins on 15 opportunities in 16:14 of ice time. Sixty-seven
percent will do. That will go a long way this season late in games,
protecting a one- or two-goal lead late, or trying to kill a 6-on-5.
*
Puck play, particularly in the offensive zone was sloppy – The
Blues didn’t generate quite enough O-zone possession because they
just didn’t make enough smart puck plays.
The
one instance that stood out was a sequence with roughly eight minutes
left in the second period when Columbus starting goalie Ivan Fedotov
made two terrific saves on Mathieu Joseph, followed by a shot block
of a Hunter Skinner shot, and then another save on Alexandre Texier.
Those
moments were far and few between. Too many one-and-dones. Puck
placement wasn’t all that great.
And
speaking of Skinner, part of the trade that sent Vladimir Tarasenko
to the New York Rangers, he played 16:43 and was assertive in this
game, with six shot attempts, three hits and one blocked shot. Really
used his body well. Someone to keep an eye on as camp rolls around.
—
The Blues are off Monday, resume practice Tuesday and play their next
preseason game Saturday at home against the Chicago Blackhawks.
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