Canucks' critical road trip begins against defensive-minded Blues

The Vancouver Canucks' postseason hopes hang in the balance as they head out for a pivotal six-game road trip.

The Canucks (32-25-11, 75 points) will start that journey Thursday night in St. Louis to play the Blues (34-28-7, 75 points).

Vancouver has gone 6-7-0 since the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Meanwhile, the Blues went 9-2-2 during that span to cover ground in the Western Conference playoff race.

The Canucks currently hold the final wild-card spot with 68 games played, one fewer than the Blues. The Calgary Flames (73 points in 67 games) and the Utah Hockey Club (71 points in 68 games) are also in the chase.

Vancouver gained traction while winning three of its last four games. The Canucks are coming off a spirit-boosting 6-2 home victory over the Central Division-leading Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night.

The Canucks had scored more than three goals in regulation just once in their previous 18 games. Brock Boeser led the offensive outburst against Winnipeg with two goals and an assist.

"I think it's just a building block," Boeser said. "It's definitely a good game to keep going off and build off of. I thought our line played well. But not just our line, our whole team played well and were connected and worked hard.

"So overall, it's just a great game to build confidence (ahead of) a huge road trip."

Now the Canucks face a big challenge against the Blues, who extended their roll with a 4-1 victory over the host Nashville Predators on Tuesday night. So Vancouver's celebration after routing Winnipeg was brief.

"This is great," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said. "Enjoy it for, you know, five minutes, and then we've got to get back to reality that we've got to go into St Louis. I mean, that's just the world we live in."

The Blues turned their season around with strong defensive play. They have allowed fewer than 30 shots on goal in 14 straight games.

"We come to the rink with confidence and we know that no matter how we're feeling or what the situation is, that our foundation, our identity is going to be there and we're going to be in games," Blues winger Jake Neighbours said. "I didn't think we were on our A-game (Tuesday) be any means. But we're finding ways right now, and it feels good."

Winger Jordan Kyrou has five goals and three assists in his last three games. Winger Dylan Holloway has two goals and five assists in his last four games.

"Our team is playing really well right now," Holloway said. "It's everybody: all four lines, our D-men are breaking pucks out nicely and, obviously, we're getting some stellar goaltending, too. It's been awesome playing this way, and it's a lot of fun, too."

These teams split their first two games this season. The Blues won 4-3 in overtime on Dec. 10 in Vancouver with Joel Hofer in goal, and the Canucks won 5-2 on Jan. 27 in St. Louis with Kevin Lankinen in their net.

--Field Level Media