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About This Page: This is a discussion on LA Kings Talk within the LetsGoKings.com forums, at Los Angeles Kings Hockey Fan Forum. VS.
Los Angeles Kings (25-34-3) 53 pts
VS.
St. Louis Blues (28-22-9) 65 pts
Game Time: 7:30 PM PST | 10:30 PM EST
Location: Staples
Behind an improving offense and the tireless effort of Manny Legace, the St. Louis Blues are refocused on reaching the postseason for the first time since 2003-04.
The Blues look to keep their surge going and continue their recent domination of the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night in the opener of a three-game western road trip.
St. Louis (28-22-9) is coming off back-to-back 5-1 victories at home, beating Columbus on Sunday and Chicago on Tuesday. The Blues are 4-0-1 since losing four in a row and 11 of 13.
The Blues, who have failed to make the playoffs the last two seasons after qualifying in 25 straight years, are just three points back of the eighth and final postseason berth in a crowded Western Conference race.
Despite being near the bottom of the NHL with 157 goals and a 14.4 power-play percentage, St. Louis has been about as good in the offensive end lately as Legace has been in net. The veteran goaltender has stopped 167 of the 175 shots he's faced in his last six starts.
The Blues have outscored their opponents 19-7 in the last five games, and are 6-for-13 with the man advantage in their last two contests.
Fourteen different St. Louis players have scored in the last five games. On Tuesday, Keith Tkachuk had two assists and scored for the second straight game, as did Brad Boyes, who leads the team with 32 goals.
The Blues haven't had any problems offensively against the Kings lately, scoring 23 goals in winning the last five meetings. The teams' two matchups this season have seen St. Louis win 5-3 in Los Angeles on Oct. 6 and 4-2 at home on Feb. 12.
Legace is likely to be in goal Thursday as the Blues expect to lean on the All-Star down the stretch. He made 19 saves in his 17th straight appearance Tuesday after making 18 Sunday.
The 35-year-old Legace, who has appeared in 48 games and is three shy of matching his career high from 2005-06 while with Detroit, has a 1.40 goals-against over the last five games.
He's had little trouble with the Kings in his career, going 10-1-0 with a tie and a 2.58 GAA.
Los Angeles (25-34-3) looks to avoid a third straight loss after falling 4-0 to Phoenix on Monday to be swept in a home-and-home series with the Coyotes.
The Kings, who have lost four of their last six games, have the fewest points in the NHL with 53.
Alexander Frolov, the team's second-leading scorer, failed to record a point Monday after posting two goals and three assists in his previous three games. He had a goal in the Kings' most recent loss to St. Louis.
The Kings have a home record of 13-17-1, and their last 10 games is a record of 5-5.
The Blues have a road record of 10-12-4, and their last 10 games is a record of 5-3-2.
The Kings will play their last home game this month against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday afternoon at Staples Center.
"It was a disappointing effort. I didn't think we skated hard enough," Kings coach Marc Crawford said. "It looked like we were a tired hockey club. We knew that this would be a challenging game, our third game in four nights and the amount of travel that we've done lately. I don't think we battled with the type of intensity that you need to battle with."
"We match up well against them, but for whatever reason they have our number," LaBarbera said. "They find ways to beat us. They did a good job of coming out early and establishing their fore-check and coming out with speed. We sat back and got caught on our heels early and they took it from there."
"Obviously, it was kind of disappointing that Mo' had to go,'' Johnson said. "He was a great partner for me. I really learned a lot from him. I really admired his patience with the puck. He was always calm and never panicked. I think that was able to rub off a little bit on me when I played with him. Hopefully I can carry some of Modry with me the rest of my career. Hopefully he can make the playoffs now and win, and I’ll be cheering for him.''
Scott Thornton on his injury:
"I’ve got an injury that sort of flares up. Once a year I have a case of it. I’ve had five or six of these the last six or seven years. I knew exactly what it was. It’s best to let it rest and get healthy again.''
"I thought I was a little bit tired but I was looking around and I think everyone was a bit tired. It was a tough practice today. I felt pretty healthy. I'll make sure tomorrow morning that I feel good and hopefully I can play tomorrow night.''
Peter Harrold quotes on coming back up:
"I hope so,'' Harrold said. "That's what everybody wants is an opportunity to play and right now it looks like I have that at least until Blake comes back and maybe longer.''
On what he's worked on in Manchester after his stints with the Kings:
"Every time you go down there you have to make the best of it and work on the things you have to work on to get back here as soon as possible. I was working mostly on making direct plays with the puck in my own zone and playing good, solid defense in the zone. That’s the biggest thing you have to do at this level to earn the coach’s trust.''
Peter Harrold on playing side by side with Lubo:
"I already played a couple games with him on the road trip. He’s got a big future for the Kings. He’s a very offensive defenseman. He’s good at moving the puck. He wants to attack.''
Enjoy the following quotes brought to you by Matthew Kredell.
Johnson said. " I think that was able to rub off a little bit on me when I played with him. Hopefully I can carry some of Modry with me the rest of my career. ''
***GDT - St. Louis Blues @ Los Angeles Kings - 2/21/08*** 
Losesomemore
