The Blues did not deserve to beat the San Jose Sharks. It was a fantastic regular season performance by the Blues, but they are clearly not a team ready to win in playoff hockey. It IS a different game. And San Jose played that game better than the Blues did. Forget the lucky goals. San Jose outworked and out-thought the regular season champs. This playoff loss revealed several weaknesses. Chris Pronger, who played like the league’s MVP all year, re-discovered his immaturity in the playoffs. The team’s captain has to be smarter. The Blues clearly need another solid defenseman, or two. Defensemen cost the team several goals. Ray Borque may have made the difference, but I’ll trust GM Larry Pleau when he says he tried to get Borque. Now go get someone else. And the Blues need a power forward willing to stand in front of the net and get pounded. That’s how you win in the playoffs. Recent NHL history has been that elite teams stumble before finally winning the Stanley Cup. This was the first year the Blues were among the NHL’s elite. Hopefully, now that they’ve stumbled, the next step is a Cup.
