The St. Louis Blues are in a rather precarious position. St. Louis is on the brink of elimination from the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets. However, captain Brayden Schenn and his teammates are not sweating their predicament as much as one would think.
On Wednesday night, the Blues lost Game 5 of their first-round series at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. As a result, St. Louis is one loss away from packing their bags and making offseason plans. However, the team is feeling quite comfortable, and Schenn explained why ahead of Friday’s do-or-die contest.
“(The Jets are) a good team but we’ve played some good hockey at home for a couple of months now. So we’re comfortable there,” Schenn said, via NHL.com’s Tracey Myers. “We played well in Games 3 and 4. You knew it was going to be a tough series. They’re a good team, [there was] a lot of back and forth and momentum swings. So far the road team hasn’t been able to get the job done. It’s our turn to get one at home now.”
Blues Have Reason to Be Confident at Home
Game 6 of this series sees the matchup shift back to the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri. This barn is home to the Blues, and it has become a fortress over the last few weeks. In fact, St. Louis has won 14 straight contests in front of their home fans.
Moreover, road teams have been unsuccessful in winning games during this series, as Schenn mentioned. All five games have been won by the team hosting the contest. This has given the Blues some added confidence despite their season being on the line.
“No one’s won on the road so far,” Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist said, via Myers. “So obviously we’re feeling good going home and [will try to] do everything we can to come back (to Winnipeg) on Sunday.”
St. Louis Has Clear Mission Statement Ahead of Game 6
There is a small caveat for St. Louis as they enter this potentially decisive game. The Blues are not wrong that the road team has not won a game in this series. This does apply to the Jets, who were dominated in Games 3 and 4 in St. Louis. However, it also applies to the Blues.
Moreover, they will need to break this trend if they want to advance. Game 7 will be played back in Winnipeg if the Jets emerge victorious in Game 6. This puts a lot of pressure on St. Louis to do what the other team could not: win a road playoff game.
For now, the Blues are not worrying about potentially beating the Jets at home. They certainly have the desire; that much is clear. However, their mission statement in the interim is much more succinct. St. Louis wants to win Friday night’s clash and force Game 7. The outcome of the winner-take-all Game 7 can wait until the matchup is confirmed.
“We know we can play better, and we know what this group is capable of,” Blues defenseman Justin Faulk said, via Myers. “We’re excited to get back home, get the job done there, and you never know. We’ve just got to win that one and get to Game 7.”
Why Blues Are ‘Comfortable’ Before Do-Or-Die Game 6