Win or go home. It's that time of year for the St. Louis Blues.
The San Jose Sharks won a massive Game 5 on the road Monday to push the Blues to the brink, and the biggest question heading into Game 6 is: who will be in the Blues' crease?
"I don't know," Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said after Game 5.
The answer should be Brian Elliott, even though he's watched the last two games from the bench. Here's why:
Average Allen
Jake Allen did his job in Game 4. He played well, stopping 31 of 34 shots, and deserves full credit for helping bring the Blues back home in a series tied 2-2. But he wasn't good Monday.
While Blues head coach Ken Hitchock said Allen was "fine," the goalie stopped only 21 of 25 shots in Game 5, and has now allowed seven goals in two games on 59 shots. It's the smallest of small sample sizes, but a .881 save percentage in two games simply isn't good enough.
Elliott got the Blues to the third round, winning two Game 7s to do so. If the Blues go down, he deserves to be out there when it happens.
Elliott can't score
Elliott went 1-2 through the first three games of the Western Conference Final. He was stellar in Game 1, stopping 31 of 32 shots, but struggled in Games 2 and 3. Elliott stopped only 20 of 23 shots in Game 2, and was pulled from Game 3 after 46 minutes after allowing three goals on just 14 shots.
Here's the thing, though: the Blues didn't score in Games 2 and 3. They were shut out twice in a row before scoring six in Game 4, so Elliott's play wasn't really the problem. You can't win if you can't score, and the Blues' offense left them in two crucial games.
The Blues have nine goals in their past two games. They'll get their goals. And they owe Elliott some.
Play the percentages
Elliott's the better goalie. He was all season. Facing elimination, the Blues must play the numbers.
Make no mistake, the Blues have two very good goalies in Allen and Elliott. Both had excellent regular seasons, and both played an integral role in the Blues' 107-point season. But Elliott had the better save percentage (.930 compared to Allen's .920), and started three regular-season games against San Jose, posting a .929 save percentage and one shutout (although he was pulled in one of those games after allowing three goals in only 13 minutes).
Allen's only appearance against the Sharks in the regular season was a relief effort, and while he's 1-1 in this series, Elliott's proved to be the better 'tender in 2015-16. With potentially only one game left in the Blues' season, Hitchock and Co. must go with the guy who got them into late May.
