ST. LOUIS, MO – It has often been said while scoring wins games, defense wins championships. Still, fans clamor in excitement for an exploding scoreboard when the frozen biscuit tickles the twine. They sit on the edge of their seats anticipating the distinct sound of a blaring fog horn resonating throughout the building piercing the ears of a packed house. All of this is a culmination of an exciting play which led to a goal for the home team and a major reason why fans packed NHL arenas in record numbers this season. Gone are the days when the free-wheeling Edmonton Oilers led by Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Jari Kurri set scoring records on their way to a five-Stanley Cup dynasty over a seven-year period from 1983-90. Defense was a necessity only declared through a hockey card or where players lined up for a face-off. In those years, goaltender Grant Fuhr was left to fend for himself in the Edmonton net while the Paul Coffey-led defense regularly joined the scoring assault. The Oilers had confidence in their gifted netminder allowing the rest of the team to consistently work their magic in the offensive third of the ice. Many could see the Oilers trusted the acrobatic goalie to bar the door shut just enough to win. Fuhr, a key contributor to that dynasty, eventually entered the Hall of Fame in 2003. After key players of Peter Pocklington’s Oilers were traded and the team broken up in cost-cutting moves, the end-to-end action resulting in playoff games with double-digit total goals pretty much ended. Although a quick look at this year’s series between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia might cause someone to doubt this trend. In the six-game series won by the Flyers, players scored at will, achieving double-digit total goals in half of those games and fifty-six total goals in the series, an average of just under ten per game. The evolution from wildly high scores to decisively conservative and somewhat boring games began in the early 1990s. The New Jersey Devils showed success through team defense. Led by future Hall-of-Fame goaltender Martin Brodeur and Hall-of-Fame defenseman Scott Stevens, the Devils demonstrated defense as one unit during their decade-long, three-championship run from 1994-2003. The Detroit Red Wings enjoyed similar success using the left-wing lock to win four Stanley Cups from 1996-2008. While core players Steve Yzerman and Niklas Lidstrom were there for all four of those championship campaigns, the team relied on an array of solid role players, each with a distinct role. They committed themselves to team defense and won those four Cups with three different goaltenders. Over the last twenty years, and even despite a slight goal-scoring bump in the post-lockout NHL, scoring remains down over prior decades and teams have adapted. A look at the 2011-12 final regular season totals on goals scored and goals allowed is pretty telling to what really brings success come playoff time. Of the top sixteen teams in goals scored, four failed to make the playoffs and only six remain in round two. Pittsburgh led the League in scoring with 3.33 goals per game and now witnesses the playoffs through television instead of the team bench. St. Louis (2.51) and Los Angeles (2.29) ranked 21st and 29th respectively, but advanced to the second round and get timely scoring when needed. Of the top sixteen teams in goals allowed, though, the top ten made the playoffs with Florida at #12 and Pittsburgh at #15 rounding out twelve of the top sixteen. Of the eight teams which advanced to the second round, six are in the top ten with Philadelphia and Washington ranked 20th and 21st respectively. St. Louis (1.89) and Los Angeles (2.07) ranked first and second. While team defense is critical, Stanley Cup Champions always include a netminder who plays splendidly in the paint. It is not acceptable to just be good from game eight-three on. A look back at recent Stanley Cup Champions quickly reveals goaltenders are key contributors. Boston’s Tim Thomas in 2011, Chicago’s Antti Niemi in 2010 and Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury in 2009 come to mind instantly. In the series between the Blues and Kings, both teams are well-equipped to go deep into the playoffs, thank in large part to their trusted backstoppers. St. Louis has opted for a two-man team, one that reminds historians of the GlennHall / Jacques Plante tandem in 1968-69 and 1969-70 which led the Blues to the Stanley Cup Finals. Brian Elliott and Jaroslav Halak combined for the best goals against average at 1.89 per game in the regular season, the only team better than 2.00. Added to that, the Blues led the League in save percentage with 0.929 which means an opponent needed to take more than fourteen shots before scoring a goal. St. Louis also led the League with fewest shots allowed at 26.7 per game. Against San Jose, Elliott delivered three wins in three straight starts as Halak lost game one and was relieved due to injury while the Blues were leading in game two. Since then, Elliott registered a goals against average of 1.37 and a 0.949 save percentage. Through the first round, the Blues lead the League with a 1.60 goals against average and 0.944 save percentage. With Halak nursing an injured left foot for at least two more games, Elliott brings to round two his regular season-leading 1.56 goals against average and 0.940 save percentage. Still, it doesn’t seem to matter which goaltender it is, the result is the same; low goals and low shots allowed and lots of confidence in the process. For the Kings, Jonathan Quick, a Vezina-Trophy finalist, brings his unflappable style and an exuding confidence which fuels Los Angeles, a team which has advanced to the second round for the first time since 2001. Quick started 69 games during the regular season delivering a 1.95 goal against average and 0.929 save percentage on the way to winning 35 of his team’s 40 wins. Collectively, the Kings stymied their opponents to the second best goals against average in the League (2.07) and 5th fewest shots per game at 27.4. Against Vancouver, Quick and the Kings delivered four wins in five games, a 1.69 goals against average and a 0.953 save percentage. While defense will have a major bearing on the outcome, a few other important factors will come into play during the series. On the power play, the Blues ranked 19th with a 16.7% success rate in the regular season, but have vaulted to 2nd in the playoffs, doubling their success rate and scoring on one of every three opportunities. Los Angeles ranked 17th in the regular season with a 17.07% success rate in the regular season, but have regressed and are 13th in the playoffs having much less potency by scoring just once in every nine opportunities. On the penalty kill, the Blues ranked 7th with a 85.8% success rate in the regular season, but have improved to 5th in the playoffs, surviving a goal being scored against them at a rate of 88.2%. Los Angeles ranked 4th in the regular season with a 87.0% success rate in the regular season, but are 6th in the playoffs surviving a man-down attack 85.7% of the time. In head-to-head battles during the regular season, the Blues went 1-2-1 against the Kings, but three players currently contributing to the team’s current run did not play together in those games. Andy McDonald missed all four games while David Perron and Alex Steen both missed two games. The three players are among the top four in team scoring with Andy MacDonald leading the team with four goals and four assists. The Kings have some changes, too. Daryl Sutter, replaced head coach Terry Murray earlier in the season and has led the team in just the last two meetings with the Blues. In those games, Blues’ Thomas Steen was not in the line-up. Both of those games ended in 1-0 victories, a shutout for each team. The opportunity for a scoring surprise is there for St. Louis. Other things to consider include the value of home-ice advantage. Through round one, teams with the home advantage entering the playoffs won just 23 of 48 games, a 48% success rate and not much of an advantage. However, during the regular season, St. Louis had the second-best home record at 30-5-5 while Los Angeles ranked 19th at 22-12-5 and less effective. On the road, both teams posted similar results with Los Angeles ranking 10th at 18-13-10 while St. Louis came in 11th at 19-16-6. During the playoffs, St. Louis, won two of their three games on home ice and both games on the road against San Jose, while Los Angeles won one of two home games and all three road games against Vancouver. One last factor to consider is how an eighth-seeded team can be dangerous in the playoffs. The 2010 Philadelphia Flyers proved this coming within one win of game seven in the Stanley Cup Final against Chicago. Closer to home in the 1991 playoffs, St. Louis fell victim to an eighth-seeded Minnesota North Stars team. After knocking off the top-ranked Chicago Blackhawks in a six-game, first round battle, Minnesota dispatched the second-ranked Blues in six games to advance to round three. Minnesota’s season didn’t end until Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins dominated the upstart North Stars in six games to claim their first Stanley Cup Championship. One thing is certain. By the time the series between the Blues and Kings is complete, the survivor will have allowed very few goals and very few shots. Tight defense and magnificent goaltending will dominate and the power play could be a decisive element to bringing victory. For the fans, there might be long waits and less frequent opportunities for a reaction to a goal being scored. Along the way, though, enjoy the physical play, acrobatic saves, tight checking and, at least once per game, a goal being scored. No matter how long it takes, the red light will eventually brighten the back of a goaltender, the scoreboard will explode, the fog horn will blare, the euphoria of a building packed with hockey fans will take place and patience will be well-served. Wait for it, wait for it, wait for it……………………….. Contact Dennis.Morrell@prohockeynews.com
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