Vancouver Eliminates Defending Champ St. Louis in Stanley Cup Playoffs

The St. Louis Blues ended lackluster defense of their Stanley Cup following a 6-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on August 21st. Vancouver took the best of seven first round series four games to two.

St. Louis was leading the Central Division when the NHL was shutdown in March over the Covid-19 pandemic, and never regained traction in the restart earlier this month. The Blues lost all three round robin games in the qualifying round and then lost their first two games in the Canucks series before winning the next two. It didn’t help that Vladimir Tarasenko was hurt and played in just four games, with no points. It also didn’t help that goalie Jordan Binnington, who was sensational as a rookie last season in both the regular and post seasons, as well as the regular season prior to the shutdown, couldn’t restart effectively. Binnington was 0-5 with a 4.72 goals against average and an .851 save percentage. Backup Jake Allen had more success, with a 2-1-1 record, a 1.89 GAA, and a .935 save percentage.

But some credit has to go to the Canucks, who came out of the gate hot on the restart. Vancouver eliminated the Minnesota Wild in four games in their opening round best of five series before dispatching the defending champs. Although Vegas is still most observers favorite to win the west, Vancouver is considered to be a strong candidate as well.