Brian Elliott Continues Playoff Redemption to Give Blues Game 1 Win vs. Sharks

Goaltending was the difference in Game 1. And when it comes to what’s looking like an epic battle between the San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference Final, Blues backstop Brian Elliott’s playoff redemption could be the storyline of the series.

It was a single blunder in an otherwise solid game by Sharks netminder Martin Jones that proved to be the deciding factor in a 2-1 loss to the Blues on Sunday at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Just shy of the midway point of the contest, a puck that wasn’t quite settled when the Blues’ Jori Lehtera slapped at it from a reasonably safe distance found some space under Jones’ arm as he tried to squeeze it shut.

It was the only goal in a period the Sharks, not Blues, dominated on the shot clock by a count of 16-5. That fact wasn't lost on Sharks coach Peter DeBoer, who singled out the period as a turning point, as Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch pointed out via Twitter. 

Elliott, meanwhile, was nearly perfect.

Just "nearly" because he benefitted from a fairly quick whistle on a shot that slipped under his glove and eventually got pushed into the net, and then, during the desperate blitz by the Sharks to tie the game with their own net empty in the third period, he watched two pucks hit the post and stay out of the mesh.

But you can’t even fault Elliott on the one goal the Sharks did score, which was first tipped by Joe Pavelski and then again redirected by Tomas Hertl.

As the Blues have been desperately seeking a playoff goaltender to replace Elliott the past couple of years, Elliott himself has proved the best candidate.

Yes, the Blues were so disappointed in Elliott’s lack of success in the 2012 and 2013 postseasons that they made a big move to bring in Ryan Miller at the trade deadline in ’14. When that didn't pan out and they let him walk as a free agent, the Blues started Jake Allen in the playoffs a year ago, even though Elliott started more games and had a better save percentage and goals-against average in the regular season.

In case you’re curious, those two playoff disappointments with Elliott in the starting role both came against the Los Angeles Kings, who won the Stanley Cup themselves in 2012 and then fell to the eventual Cup-winning Chicago Blackhawks in the conference final in 2013. His save percentage wasn’t spectacular in the first meeting, at .904, but it’s tough to blame a guy with a .919 save percentage and 1.89 GAA—which is what Elliott contributed in 2013 while falling to the Kings in six games in the first round. Perhaps he didn’t make the spectacular saves when most needed, but he didn’t get enough goal support, either.

But that, as they say, is history.

We’re talking about his comeback. The 31-year-old is clearly one of the top goaltenders of the 2016 NHL playoffs. Those much-needed saves in timely moments? He’s offering them up in every round. In almost every game.

He’s in a Conn Smythe battle with his captain, David Backes, who had another strong performance in Game 1. Backes took five of his team’s 23 shots on goal on Sunday, threw 11 hits (nearly half of his team’s recorded checks and just three shy of the Sharks’ total), opened the scoring with a great deflection on a power play 15:04 into the first perio, and even got into a beard-pulling match with the Sharks’ Joe Thornton.

But as big a night as Backes had, it’s Elliott who was the difference.

He made highlight-reel stops, including a beautiful kick with the right leg on Pavelski, and a stacked-pad slide that denied Patrick Marleau on a great setup from Joe Thornton.

He remained calm and collected as he faced a barrage of pucks in the dying minutes, and gave credit after the contest to his teammates for not allowing the Sharks to get too many glorious opportunities in front of him.

“They came on strong,” Elliott told Christine Simpson on the CBC broadcast, in what might be the understatement of the spring. “I was just basically trying to stay in the middle of the net and the guys did the rest of the job. They kept everything to the outside except for the last shot, and he was under pressure.”

Stopping 31 of 32 shots for a save percentage of .969 on the night, Elliott’s total through 15 games in these playoffs is now .932—third best among those who qualify with at least 440 minutes of ice time. 

It’s by far Elliott’s best showing in five postseason appearances with the Ottawa Senators and Blues in a decade-long career.

Guess he gets better with age.

Maybe they should change his nickname from Moose to Merlot.