ST. LOUIS -- After compiling a 3-2 record over the past week, one aspect of the St. Louis Blues' game remains stellar: the penalty kill.
It was the silver lining in their 1-0 loss to the Jets on Tuesday, when they played almost six minutes shorthanded and emerged unscathed. Late in the second period they faced a four-minute high sticking double minor by T.J. Oshie while teammate Paul Stastny had 18 seconds left on a slashing call, though the Jets' full advantage was postponed until they finished serving a two-minute minor.
Overall, it's been five games since anyone has scored on the Blues with the extra man. The last time the Blues gave up a power-play goal was a 4-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 28, when Jack Johnson took a shot from the blue line as teammate Boone Jenner screened Brian Elliott. The Blues' opponents during the penalty kill's recent run of perfection currently rank 16th (Winnipeg), 20th (Chicago), 11th (Calgary), 14th (Dallas) and 15th (Vancouver) in power-play percentage. Only one of the Blues' potential first-round playoff opponents ranks higher: the Los Angeles Kings, who are ninth.
As of March 1, the Blues' penalty-kill unit has performed second best in the league behind the New York Islanders.
"We've had a huge buy-in from the guys," goaltender Jake Allen says. "They're sacrificing themselves for the team. That's what it takes on the PK."
Some of the unit's current success is likely tied to the time of year. As the playoffs approach, defense comes back in style. Coach Ken Hitchcock has noticed overall commitment around the league to blocking shots as teams battle for postseason positioning.
"You can see what's at stake for everybody right now," Hitchcock says. "You see players doing things that, in the middle of the season, there's no way they would go down and block the shots they are, the way they do it, but they're doing it now."
Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo leads the Blues in blocked shots this season with 160; Zbynek Michalek has 156, including his stats with Arizona before joining the Blues as a trade-deadline acquisition in March.
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From a goaltender's viewpoint, adding Michalek was an excellent call.
"For me, I think one of the biggest moves that we made is bring "Z" in," Allen says. "He's one of the best shot blockers in the league, and one of the best I've played against."
Michalek joined a team that showed resiliency after poor performances shorthanded earlier in the season. Going into Tuesday's game, the Blues had the best penalty-kill rate in the NHL since January at 88.5 percent. At the end of December, it was 78.4 percent, which placed them 24th.
For a club battling for top billing this postseason, it's a trend in the right direction.
You can follow Elisabeth Meinecke on Twitter at@lismeineckeor email her atecmeinecke@gmail.com
