The St. Louis Blues return to Enterprise Center on Saturday night looking to carry the momentum of a hard-fought 1-0 shootout win over the Utah Mammoth into a matchup with the Florida Panthers that carries both competitive and sentimental weight. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. CT, with the game available on Blue Note+ and 101 ESPN.
The evening will also serve as a celebration of Blues alum Keith “Big Walt” Tkachuk, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame earlier this week. Tkachuk is scheduled to take part in a ceremonial puck drop alongside his sons Matthew and Brady, both of whom play for Florida, adding a personal storyline to the first meeting between the clubs this season. Fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 5:45 p.m. for the pregame recognition.
St. Louis enters at 9-8-2 with 20 points, good for seventh in the Central Division. Thursday’s victory in Salt Lake City marked the Blues’ second straight win and gave goaltender Joel Hofer his second shutout of the season and 10th of his career. Connor McMichael scored the decisive goal in the shootout, while the penalty kill went a perfect 4-for-4. Florida arrives at 11-7-2 with 24 points, sitting fifth in the Atlantic and riding a two-game winning streak after a 5-4 home victory over Detroit. The Panthers are 6-5-2 on the road but will be without captain Aleksander Barkov and forward Brad Marchand, both sidelined with knee injuries.
Offensively the Panthers have the edge, averaging 3.25 goals per game compared with St. Louis’ 2.79. Defensively the numbers are closer, with the Blues allowing 2.89 goals per game and Florida 3.00. Special teams favor Florida slightly on the power play (23.8 percent to 20.0 percent), while both clubs rank among the league’s better penalty-killing units at 86.3 and 86.0 percent, respectively. The Blues swept the series last season, outscoring Florida 11-6, and are 3-2-0 in their last five home meetings with the Panthers. They have also scored at least four goals in six of their last nine games against Florida.
Center Mason McTavish stands out as a player to watch for St. Louis. Through 19 games he has 7 goals and 5 assists and leads the team with a 54.2 percent faceoff win rate. He has cleared 60 percent in the circle in four of his last five games and led the Blues with four shots on goal and nine faceoff wins in the Utah victory. Jake Neighbours is expected to dress in his 300th career game and will be counted on to match Florida’s physical style, a group that features the Tkachuk brothers along with Sam Bennett and Radko Gudas.
After Saturday the Blues host Anaheim on Nov. 17, travel to Pittsburgh on Nov. 19, and return home against New Jersey on Nov. 21. Saturday’s contest offers St. Louis a chance to push for a third straight win against a Florida team still adjusting without two of its top forwards, all while the Enterprise Center crowd recognizes one of the franchise’s most accomplished power forwards.
