St. Louis (31-17-8-5) at Pittsburgh (24-27-4-5)
Game Info: 3:00 pm ET, Sat Feb 22, 2003
TV: KPLR, SNP
With the playoffs a little more than one month away, goaltending remains a question for the St. Louis Blues.
Brent Johnson figures to be back in net when the Blues meet Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins for the only time this season.
Fred Brathwaite allowed three goals on five shots before being pulled at 2:16 of the second period Thursday in a 4-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Johnson stopped eight of nine shots the rest of the game.
It was the eighth time this season that coach Joel Quenneville had to pull a goaltender for a reason other than injury. St. Louis is rumored to be interested in Phoenix goalie Sean Burke.
``They're here and we're expecting much more from them,'' Quenneville said of Johnson and Brathwaite. ``They should be expecting much more from themselves.''
Brathwaite was making his second consecutive start in place of Johnson, who has allowed eight goals in his last 122 minutes over a three-game span.
The Blues, who have one win in their last four games (1-2-0-1), have seen their lead in the Central Division drop to only one point over the Detroit Red Wings.
While goaltending remains a concern for St. Louis, left wing Keith Tkachuk is taking care of the offense. Tkachuk is among the league's hottest players with 11 goals and 18 points in his last 10 games.
Pittsburgh is trying to remain in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but needs to put a win streak together to have any chance.
After consecutive victories over New Jersey and Edmonton, the Penguins had the misfortune of facing the red-hot Avalanche on Thursday and Colorado came away with a 5-2 victory.
Rookie Tomas Surovy and Michal Rozsival scored for Pittsburgh, which is 2-3 since trading star right wing Alexei Kovalev to the New York Rangers as part of an eight-player deal.
Not surprisingly, Lemieux, the NHL's leading scorer, has no points in those three losses. He has two goals and two assists in two wins without Kovalev.
STANDINGS: Blues - 75 points, 1st place, Central Division. Penguins - 57 points, 5th place, 23 PB, Atlantic Division.
TEAM LEADERS: Blues - Tkachuk, 28 goals; Doug Weight, 45 assists; Pavol Demitra, 65 points; Reed Low, 151 PIM. Penguins - Lemieux, 22 goals, 55 assists and 77 points; Steve McKenna, 94 PIM.
SPECIAL TEAMS (through Feb. 20): Blues - Power play: 20.4 percent (64 for 314), 4th in NHL. Penalty killing: 81.5 percent (243 for 298), 25th. Penguins - Power play: 21.0 percent (57 for 271), 3rd. Penalty killing: 83.8 percent (223 for 266), 13th.
GOALTENDERS: Blues - Johnson (14-9-4, 2 SO, 2.41 GAA); Brathwaite (12-9-4, 2, 2.66). Penguins - Johan Hedberg (14-13-3, 1, 2.82); Sebastien Caron (4-6-1, 2, 2.31).
2001-02 SEASON SERIES: Blues, 2-0.
LAST MEETING: Jan. 12, 2002; Blues, 4-1. At Pittsburgh, Scott Mellanby had two goals, and Cory Stillman and Tkachuk scored less than two minutes apart in the third period to lead St. Louis.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS
Blues - 15-9-5-2 on the road; Penguins - 13-13-1-2 at home.
Game Info: 3:00 pm ET, Sat Feb 22, 2003
TV: KPLR, SNP
With the playoffs a little more than one month away, goaltending remains a question for the St. Louis Blues.
Brent Johnson figures to be back in net when the Blues meet Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins for the only time this season.
Fred Brathwaite allowed three goals on five shots before being pulled at 2:16 of the second period Thursday in a 4-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Johnson stopped eight of nine shots the rest of the game.
It was the eighth time this season that coach Joel Quenneville had to pull a goaltender for a reason other than injury. St. Louis is rumored to be interested in Phoenix goalie Sean Burke.
``They're here and we're expecting much more from them,'' Quenneville said of Johnson and Brathwaite. ``They should be expecting much more from themselves.''
Brathwaite was making his second consecutive start in place of Johnson, who has allowed eight goals in his last 122 minutes over a three-game span.
The Blues, who have one win in their last four games (1-2-0-1), have seen their lead in the Central Division drop to only one point over the Detroit Red Wings.
While goaltending remains a concern for St. Louis, left wing Keith Tkachuk is taking care of the offense. Tkachuk is among the league's hottest players with 11 goals and 18 points in his last 10 games.
Pittsburgh is trying to remain in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but needs to put a win streak together to have any chance.
After consecutive victories over New Jersey and Edmonton, the Penguins had the misfortune of facing the red-hot Avalanche on Thursday and Colorado came away with a 5-2 victory.
Rookie Tomas Surovy and Michal Rozsival scored for Pittsburgh, which is 2-3 since trading star right wing Alexei Kovalev to the New York Rangers as part of an eight-player deal.
Not surprisingly, Lemieux, the NHL's leading scorer, has no points in those three losses. He has two goals and two assists in two wins without Kovalev.
STANDINGS: Blues - 75 points, 1st place, Central Division. Penguins - 57 points, 5th place, 23 PB, Atlantic Division.
TEAM LEADERS: Blues - Tkachuk, 28 goals; Doug Weight, 45 assists; Pavol Demitra, 65 points; Reed Low, 151 PIM. Penguins - Lemieux, 22 goals, 55 assists and 77 points; Steve McKenna, 94 PIM.
SPECIAL TEAMS (through Feb. 20): Blues - Power play: 20.4 percent (64 for 314), 4th in NHL. Penalty killing: 81.5 percent (243 for 298), 25th. Penguins - Power play: 21.0 percent (57 for 271), 3rd. Penalty killing: 83.8 percent (223 for 266), 13th.
GOALTENDERS: Blues - Johnson (14-9-4, 2 SO, 2.41 GAA); Brathwaite (12-9-4, 2, 2.66). Penguins - Johan Hedberg (14-13-3, 1, 2.82); Sebastien Caron (4-6-1, 2, 2.31).
2001-02 SEASON SERIES: Blues, 2-0.
LAST MEETING: Jan. 12, 2002; Blues, 4-1. At Pittsburgh, Scott Mellanby had two goals, and Cory Stillman and Tkachuk scored less than two minutes apart in the third period to lead St. Louis.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS
Blues - 15-9-5-2 on the road; Penguins - 13-13-1-2 at home.
