Why St. Louis Blues will win the Semi-Final Series against Los Angeles Kings –NHL Playoffs Special
St. Louis Blues are at an all time low now as they could be eliminated any time now being down 2-0 in the 2012 National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup Western Conference Playoff Semi-Final series against Los Angeles Kings, but they are a strong team and
will eventually comeback.
Blues have been known be to a team that fights till the last moment and coming out of one of their best regular seasons in the league, St. Louis is not going to be dying down anytime soon.
There is a very good possibility that St. Louis just might be put on the verge of elimination come Game 3 against the Kings at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles but knowing their ability to rebound on foreign territory, there is also that possibility that
the series will be level come Game 5.
Believing that his team will eventually make a comeback, St. Louis head coach, Ken Hitchcock, is confident that Blues can play under pressure and that attribute will help them in the longer run.
"If we play better, this is going to be a really good series," Hitchcock said. "We've played our best hockey on the road, for whatever reason. But this is a different opponent. This opponent has strong resolve. We have to play better. We've got to manage
the puck better; we've got to check better. If you look at the scoring chances, there's too many lost one-on-one battles in the first two games in critical areas and giving up scoring chances.”
What St. Louis needs at the moment is to work on their power play killing. As Blues have been 0-12 for the entire series, working the added man advantage could be their key to overtaking Los Angeles and advancing to the Western Conference Finals.
Los Angeles is a team that gives a lot of penalties with nine in Game 1 alone and Blues need to find a way to capitalise on those chances and they very well can being one of the best in the league during the regular season.
"The power play is costing us in a big way,” Hitchcock added. "It’s hurting us. Short-handed goals take away a lot of momentum. We’ve had two in two games. Careless play by us."
The only player that can become a factor in how Blues play in the next two or even more games is Brian Elliott. He was the best goalie at the end of the season and played exceptionally well against San Jose Sharks in the opening round. Now, with Jaroslav
Halak out for at least this series, the All-Star goalie will have to make the difference in his game.
It will be interesting to see how the series fairs out to be as Game 3 kicks off on Thursday, May 3, 2012, in Los Angeles.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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