The Blues dropped Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals 3-1 to Los Angeles Saturday night and they might have lost defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.
Pietrangelo left the game in the second period with a possible concussion after being shoved into the boards by LA's D.J. King. King received a two-minute minor penalty for boarding, and on the Blues' power play, LA scored a shorthanded goal in what turned out to be the game-winner.
"I didn't try to put a lot of force into it obviously," King said. "We were both going for the puck, it was coming slow ? I tried to position myself a little on the inside of him and when I did that I leaned on him and I guess he was off balance and fell in."
Pietrangelo returned to the game briefly, but left before the end of the second period. He will be re-evaluated and is listed as questionable for Monday's Game 2.
Two Blues who recently returned from lengthy absences with concussions -- Alex Steen and Andy McDonald -- were disappointed in the hit.
"I obviously think it's a dangerous hit, I am going leave it at that," Steen said. " 'Petro' didn't return, so we will see how he is doing."
"He was in a dangerous area there, obviously," McDonald said. "You're four feet from the boards and you get pushed from behind, that's a scary hit. I don't know ? You don't want to see that type of hit. Hopefully, he's OK. We'll have to wait and see."
Kay Whitmore, the NHL's supervisor of officiating for the series, talked with a pool reporter after the game and said that officials deemed it a minor penalty.
"They see the whole play unfold and they didn't deem in this instance obviously that King drove (Pietrangelo) into the boards. It was a hit, he was in a vulnerable position, but they didn't deem it violent enough to call a major."
The NHL's department of player safety will review the hit and a decision on whether a suspension is warranted should be known Sunday.
NOTES, QUOTES
--The Blues gave up a shorthanded goal to LA's Matt Greene in second period, giving the Kings a 2-1 lead. Meanwhile, the Blues were 0 for 3 on the power play, dropping them to 0 for 17 this season, including four regular-season games. "The difference is the special teams," Blues captain David Backes said. "You just thought it would be a little bit different from that, giving up a shorthanded goal at the end of the second was not ideal by any means. We took a rest and they stayed going, and that's the result ? we're digging out of another hole here."
--Backes is hoping to have a better offensive series than in Round 1, where he was assigned the responsibility of defending San Jose's Joe Thornton. He did his job, but finished with one point, a goal. The Blues opened the Western Conference semifinals Saturday against Los Angeles, and Backes got off to a desirable start with his second goal of the playoffs. "I'm hoping to get back to that (balanced) game," Backes said. "I think I was on my heels a little bit too much in that first series. We're not really caring about personal stats, but we're caring about what the team success is."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "We should be able to sustain it. I like the way our team can play and we did a lot of good things in the first period, but we didn't stay at it. We can play a lot better. I don't think anybody is feeling down about our chances because we know we didn't (play) our best game." -- Blue captain David Backes.
ROSTER REPORT
PLAYER NOTES:
--D Alex Pietrangelo left in the second period of Saturday's 3-1 loss to Los Angeles with a possible concussion. Pietrangelo was hit into the boards by the Kings' Dwight King, who received a two-minute minor penalty. Pietrangelo will be re-evaluated and is listed as questionable for Monday's Game 2.
--G Brian Elliott made his fourth straight start of the playoffs and took a loss in the Blues' 3-1 defeat to Los Angeles in Game 1. Elliott made 26 saves on 28 shots by the Kings, who picked up an empty-netter with 14 seconds remaining.
--D Barret Jackman is looking to have a better second round, after struggling in the conference quarterfinals according to Blues coach Ken Hitchcock. But in Game 1 against the Kings, Jackman turned a puck over to Dustin Penner, who fed Slava Voynov for his first goal of the playoffs.
