ST. LOUIS, MO – The Blues and Blackhawks represent a unique rivalry which some might believe began exclusively through their geographic proximity to each other. The story is a little deeper than that, though.
The Wirtz family, owners of the Blackhawks since 1966, owned the St. Louis Arena and the minor league affiliate St. Louis Braves, farm team of the Blackhawks, played there from 1963-67. Fans had reason to cheer for the players, Chicago-controlled operating as an affiliate in the Central Professional Hockey League.
It was in evaluating their business in the Gateway City that it was determined the decrepit structure was not something they wanted to continue owning and operating. In the midst of examining expansion candidates, St. Louis became a candidate city before a potential buyer was identified.
In the end, the Wirtz Family sold the Arena for to the Salomon family, owners of a large local insurance company. Conditions included bringing the building up to NHL standards. Several million dollars was spent in the process and the securing of this sixth franchise eliminated the near-certain awarding of Baltimore as the final city.
Since then, the rivalry has grown, the many details of which have been built over the last 50 years.
The Blues and Blackhawks have competed in the same division every season since 1970-71, tied with the Bruins and Sabres for the longest active streak in the NHL. They have met in the Stanley Cup Playoffs at least once in each of the past five decades.
The 2017 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic will mark the 305th all-time regular-season meeting between the Blues and Blackhawks. Chicago leads the all-time series, earning 337 points in the 304 contests (146-113-45). St. Louis has countered with 294 points (123-133-48).
The 2017 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic will mark the fourth of five contests between the Blues and Blackhawks in their 2016-17 season series (STL 1-1-1; CHI 2-1-0). In their final matchup before meeting outdoors, on Dec. 17, the Blackhawks scored three
Photo By: Brianna O’Mara
unanswered goals in the third period to win 6-4 and halt the Blues’ home point streak at 14 games.
The Blues and Blackhawks have met 12 times in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Chicago owning an 8-4 edge. The only franchise the Blues have faced more often in the postseason is the Dallas Stars (13 times), while the Blackhawks have only faced the Canadiens (17) and Red Wings (16) more often.
The Blackhawks qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for 28 consecutive seasons from 1969-70 through 1996-97, the second-longest such streak in NHL history. The Blues made the postseason for 25 straight years from 1979-80 through 2003-04, tied for the third-longest streak.
The first-ever playoff meeting between the Blues and Blackhawks occurred in 1973, a best-ofseven Quarterfinal. Chicago won the series 4-1, outscoring St. Louis 22-9.
The Blues and Blackhawks have met in the postseason twice in the past three years, with 10 of the 13 games decided by one goal. In 2014, Chicago rallied from a 0-2 series deficit to win in six games while the Blues prevailed in overtime of Game 7 in 2016.
The 2016 First Round Stanley Cup Playoff series between the Blues and Blackhawks, won by St. Louis in overtime of Game 7, was one of the most closely-contested in recent NHL history. Six of the seven games were decided by one goal and 91.3% of total playing time in the series saw the score tied or within one goal (412:48 of 452:11).
Current Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville owns franchise coaching records for both the Blackhawks and the Blues. He has guided the Blackhawks to a franchise-record three Stanley Cups and holds the Blues coaching records for career games (593) and wins (307).
The 2017 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic is a matchup of the career wins leaders among active coaches, Chicago’s Joel Quenneville (1st active, 2nd all-time, 824) and St. Louis’ Ken Hitchcock (2nd active, 4th all-time, 776).
Eighty-three skaters, goaltenders and head coaches have competed for both the Blues and Blackhawks, including current St. Louis netminder Carter Hutton and Chicago bench boss Joel Quenneville. Of those 83, only three have appeared in at least 200 games with each franchise: Marc Bergevin, Quenneville and Brian Sutter.
Photo By: Brianna O’Mara
Five current Blackhawks players dressed for the club in its first Winter Classic appearance in 2009 against Detroit at Wrigley Field: Brian Campbell, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Jonathan Toews.
While the Blues are making their outdoor debut, three players on their roster have appeared previously with other clubs: Robert Bortuzzo (for Pittsburgh in 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series), Jay Bouwmeester (for Calgary in 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic) and Carl Gunnarsson (for Toronto in 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic).
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