By Stefan Guilliams, Staff Writer

The St. Louis Blues were thought to be the best team in the league until April hit. The Blues hit a rough patch down the stretch, plagued with injuries, questionable lineups by Coach Hitchcock, and just bad hockey. These problems cost the Blues’ chances at not only the Presidents Cup (Leagues best record), but also the division title. Losing the lead late to the Colorado Avalanche, the Blues sit at the two-seed facing the third-seeded Blackhawks in the, opening, divisional round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

ESPN NHL analyst, Barry Melrose, put it best when he described the upcoming series as, “war,” when previewing the game for ESPN. “This could be the Stanley Cup winner,” Melrose exclaims. He continues to say, “This will be the most interesting series of the eight going. If you can only watch one game, watch St. Louis [versus] Blackhawks.”

Led by captain, center David Backes, the Blues will attempt to resurrect their early season dominance against their archrival Blackhawks. The series starts Thursday, April 17 in St. Louis. The Blackhawks, plagued with injuries themselves, will be praying for the Blues streak of bad luck to continue through the next four to seven games. However, as Melrose said earlier, “This series will be war” and the one to watch.