St. Louis Blues Chris Stewart gets past the  Edmonton Oilers defense with the puck during the first period at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis on March 26, 2013.     UPI/Bill Greenblatt

St. Louis Blues forward Chris Stewart, who leads the team with 18 goals and 36 points, will need to continue his high level of play if the Blues want a deep run in the playoffs. UPI/Bill Greenblatt

The St. Louis Blues fell to the Los Angeles Kings in four games during last year’s Western Conference playoffs. Starting Tuesday night, the Blues will look for revenge as they host the defending Stanley Cup Champions in the first round of the playoffs in a matchup of the fourth and fifth seed.

The Blues finished the season going 11-2-0 in April behind Brian Elliott who turned his season around. Elliott was 3-6-1, before allowing just 16 goals in the Blues’ 13 games this month. Elliott is looking for redemption after the Kings picked apart Elliott who started last year’s series after an injury to Jaroslav Halak.

The Kings, who won the Cup after finishing in eighth place last year, finished fifth.

Here are some articles from various writers of NHL.com, with a glimpse at the key players in this series.

Kings goalie Jonathan Quick

Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester

Kings center Mike Richards

Why the Blues will win the Stanley Cup



Missourinet