January 31st vs. Toledo Cherokee

Mike Keeven's power play goal and shorthanded assist leads the Jr. Blues.

Jr. Blues Continue To Play Well On the Road

Much has been said about how good the Jr. Blues play at home, but it is their road record that may lift the Jr. Blues to a berth at Nationals in Syracuse, New York in April.  The Jr. Blues started the weekend strong controlling most of the play in the first period.  Mike Keeven blasted a shot from the point that beat the Toledo goaltender Brett Reeves cleanly.  The goal was Mike's 4th power play goal of the season.  Larry Kopecky and Jim Jost assisted.  With just 6 seconds remaining in the period, Toledo would score their only goal of the weekend as they converted a rebound to tie the score.  The second period, the Jr. Blues continued to skate past the Cherokee.  Pete Wildhaber deflected a Larry Kopecky shot for a shorthanded goal.  Wildhaber smartly joined the rush as Toledo had a delayed penalty being called against them.  Mike Keeven also assisted on the play.  Then moments later, while the teams were 4 on 4, Kyle Kraemer scored an unassisted goal as he stole the puck and let go of a quick wrist shot that sent Reeves to the bench.   The third period was dominated by the Jr. Blues as they allowed only 5 shots.  Branden Moran scored off a quick pass by Mike Davies with Tony Jost also assisting.  Derek Szesny was strong again between the pipes as he recorded his league leading 17th win of the season.

St. Louis  1-2-1-4
Toledo  1-0-0-1

Shots:
St. Louis  12-8-9-29
Toledo  10-7-5-22

Scoring:
Mike Keeven  1 goal, 1 assist
Larry Kopecky 2 assists
Kyle Kraemer 1 goal
Branden Moran 1 goal
Jim Jost 1 assist
Mike Davies 1 assist
Tony Jost 1 assist

Derek Szesny made 21 saves on 22 shots.

January 24th vs. Chicago Force

Branden Moran leads Jr. Blues with two goals and an assist.

Jr. Blues Dominate Force

The Jr. Blues came out flying as they scored three first period goals and outshot the Force 17-5.   The line of Tony Jost, Branden Moran and Michael Davies scored all three-first period goals.  The first, was a blast from Moran who cranked a high slapper past the Chicago goaltender.  Davies and Jost set up the play that sent Moran down the left wing side.  Moran scored again on a nifty backhander with Davies assisting.  Tony Jost then scored just 19 seconds later after a Mike Hewkin shot.  The second period started strong for the Jr. Blues as Mike Keeven blasted a power play shot to give the Jr. Blues a 4-0 lead.  Later in the second, the Force scored their only goal of the game.  In the third, newcomer, Kyle Kraemer, scored his first CSHL goal with Cory Spradling and Ken Jacobsmeyer assisting.  Derek Szesny was bored but effective stopping 25 of 26 shots. 

Chicago  0-1-0-1
St. Louis 3-1-1-5

Shots:
Chicago  5-12-9-26
St. Louis 17-16-13-46

Scoring:
Branden Moran  2 goals, 1 assist
Tony Jost 1 goal, 1 assist
Michael Davies 2 assists
Mike Keeven 1 goal
Kyle Kraemer 1 goal
Ken Jacobsmeyer 1 assist
Cory Spradling  1 assist
Mike Hewkin 1 assist

Derek Szesny made 25 saves on 26 shots.

Derek Janssen nets game winner with 2:49 remaining in contest.

Jr. Blues Comeback Again in Third Period!

Larry Kopecky scored the only goal of the first period.  Kopecky took a Joey Vitale pass and calmly deked the Chicago goaltender.  Mike Hewkin started the play from the blue line earning an assist.   The second period was tense as the Force tied the game off a deflected shot from the point.  The third period started poorly as the Force took the lead just 5 minutes into the stanza.  This seemed to wake up the slumbering Jr. Blues as they launched an all out attack against the Chicago squad.  Kyle Kraemer tied the game with 8:48 remaining on a quick shot off a Danny Brown feed.  Chris Koenen also assisted on the tally.  With the Jr. Blues smelling blood, their intensity picked up.  Derek Janssen scored the game winner with 2:49 remaining.  Branden Moran and Kraemer cycled the puck and then Kraemer hit Janssen all alone in the slot as he riffled a shot past the goaltender.  Mike Keeven added an empty net goal off a Joey Vitale face-off win to ice the game with 48 seconds remaining.   Devan McConnell was terrific in nets making 33 saves.

Chicago  0-1-1-2
St. Louis 1-0-3-4

Shots:
Chicago  13-10-12-35
St. Louis 17-11-14-42

Scoring:
Kyle Kraemer 1 goal, 1 assist
Joey Vitale 2 assists
Derek Janssen  1 goal
Larry Kopecky 1 goal
Mike Keeven 1 goal
Danny Brown 1 assist
Mike Hewkin 1 assist
Branden Moran 1 assist
Chris Koenen 1 assist

Devan McConnell stopped 33 of 35 shots.

Branden Moran's goal and 2 assists give Jr. Blues jump on Mustangs.

Jr. Blues Win Showdown!

The much awaited weekend involving the CSHL's top two teams started with a bang for the Jr. Blues.  Branden Moran was set up all alone in front of the Mustang net by Tony Jost.  Moran made no mistake as the Jr. Blues took the lead just one minute into the contest.  The Mustangs tied the score later in the period.  Derek Szesny was key in the period as he made 14 saves to keep the game tied after one. 

The Jr. Blues owned the second period.  The under-manned, under-sized, under-aged Jr. Blues buzzed the Peoria end for much of the period.  Zach Barron broke the tie 5 minutes into the period scoring on a breakaway.  Barron sniped a perfect shot on the goal, but the play was made by Branden Moran who's center ice hit caused the Peoria turnover.  With the Jr. Blues applying relentless pressure, Cory Spradling deflected a Mike Keeven shot to give the Jr. Blues a 3-1 lead.  In the final minute of the period, Peoria responded finishing a rebound to make the score 3-2 after two periods. 

The Jr. Blues started the third period with a power play.  Tony Jost again was the setup man as he fed a perfect pass to Michael Davies who deposited a quick shot in the Peoria net.  The Jr. Blues struck just 19 seconds later as Chris Koenen dumped the puck down low.  With Zach Barron applying the forecheck, Kyle O'Kane stole the puck and slammed home the Jr. Blues 5th goal of the game.   The Mustangs scored halfway through the period, but that was all the comeback the Jr. Blues would allow making the final 5-3 in favor of the Jr. Blues.

Discipline was key for the Jr. Blues as they gave up only 4 power plays to Peoria's 8.  The Jr. Blues outshot the Mustangs 34-33. 

St. Louis  1-2-2-5
Peoria  1-1-1-3

Shots:
St. Louis  9-15-10-34
Peoria  15-7-11-33

Scoring:
Branden Moran  1 goal, 2 assists
Tony Jost  2 assists
Zach Barron 1 goal
Cory Spradling 1 goal
Michael Davies  1 goal
Kyle O'Kane  1 goal
Pete Wildhaber 1 assist
Mike Keeven 1 assist

Derek Szesny made 30 saves on 33 shots.

Pete Wildhaber's two first period assists gave the Jr. Blues the lead.

Jr. Blues Can't Hold On as Mustangs Fight Back

The Jr. Blues started slow, allowing the first 8 shots of the game.   The Mustangs converted their 8th shot for a goal and took the lead.  The Jr. Blues then dominated the rest of the period out shooting the Mustangs 9-0 in that span.  Two quick penalties against the Mustangs gave the Jr. Blues a late period 5 on 3 power play.  Michael Davies set up in the slot and blasted a laser beam shot to tie the game.  Pete Wildhaber and Branden Moran assisted on the goal.  Still on the power play, the Jr. Blues went back to work.  With the game clock ticking down on the period, Pete Wildhaber had the puck on the blue line.  Wildhaber ignored the cries of "shoot" and faked a shot and hit Larry Kopecky with a perfect back door feed.  Kopecky took his time and pulled the goaltender out of the net just one-second before the buzzer. 

The Jr. Blues built off the momentum of the first period and came out flying in the second.  Shawn Gawrys converted a Kyle O'Kane pass on a two-on-one break.  Gawrys roofed a perfect shot to give the Jr. Blues a 3-1 advantage.  But as the period wore on, the Mustangs fought back into the contest scoring two late second period goals to tie the game. 

The third period started with heavy pressure by the Mustangs.  The Mustangs converted a 2 on 1 play to take the lead 6 minutes into the period.  The Jr. Blues somehow came up with an amazing effort in the last 5 minutes but missed several opportunities to tie the game. 

The Jr. Blues were most impressive this weekend considering the players who were missing from their lineup.  Joey Vitale, Shawn Wring, Danny Brown, and Chris Stock all did not make the trip.  Derek Janssen was injured early in the Saturday game and was unavailable for the rest of the weekend.   Two new Jr. Blues just added this week, Jason Devine and Kyle Kraemer both contributed with fine play.    The split leaves the Jr. Blues in first place, four points ahead of the Mustangs.  The Jr. Blues have 14 games remaining on their schedule and the Mustangs have 16 games remaining.  The Jr. Blues next contest will be at home against the very talented Chicago Force.

St. Louis  2-1-0-3
Peoria  1-2-1-4

Shots:
St. Louis 9-7-9-25
Peoria 8-8-12-28

Scoring:
Pete Wildhaber 2 assists
Michael Davies 1 goal
Larry Kopecky 1 goal
Shawn Gawrys 1 goal
Branden Moran 1 assist
Kyle O'Kane 1 assist

Devan McConnell made 24 saves on 28 shots.

Tony Jost scored a goal and assist leading the Jr. Blues to a win over the Jets.

Jr. Blues Squeak by Metro

Strong defense and goaltending allowed the Jr. Blues to capture two more points against the Metro Jets.  The only goal of the first period was a Tony Jost deflection of a Michael Davies shot.  Jost arrived at the net the instant the puck did and redirected the shot leaving the Jets goaltender with no chance.  The second period the Jets tied the score early.  Both teams had opportunities but were stymied by the opposing goaltenders.   With 12 seconds remaining, a face-off outside the Metro blue line looked innocent enough with the Jr. Blues on the power play at the time.  Tony Jost and Branden Moran created a two-on-one break and Jost hit Moran with the perfect pass and he undressed the goaltender netting the game winner.  Derek Szesny was strong throughout as the Jets were unable to solve the St. Louis goaltender in the third period.

St. Louis 1-1-0-2
Metro   0-1-0-1

Shots:
St. Louis  14-9-8-31
Metro   7-10-6-23

Scoring:
Tony Jost 1 goal, 1 assist
Branden Moran 1 goal
Michael Davies 1 assist
Pete Wildhaber 1 assist
Derek Szesny made 22 saves on 23 shots for the win

Pete Wildhaber's 1 goal and 3 assists propel Jr. Blues to win.

Wildhaber's Four Points Leads Jr. Blues

After a scoreless first period against the Flint Jr. Generals, the Jr. Blues exploded for 3 second period goals and held on to win 5-1.  Michael Davies netted a power play goal with a blast early in the second period.  Branden Moran then added two goals with Davies and Pete Wildhaber assisting on both.  The Jr. Blues scored two more power play goals in the third period with Wildhaber and Jim Jost scoring.  Devan McConnell was busy when the Jr. Blues weren't scoring on the power play (4 goals) as McConnell made 28 saves in the win.

St. Louis  0-3-2-5
Flint    0-0-1-1

Shots:
St. Louis  7-14-17-38
McConnell 13-10-6-29

Scoring:
Pete Wildhaber 1 goal, 3 assists
Michael Davies 1 goal, 2 assists
Branden Moran 2 goals
Jim Jost 1 goal, 1 assist
Larry Kopecky 1 assist
Mike Hewkin 1 assist

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