The second day of the Traverse City Prospect Tournament is in the books, and it
 was another day full of exciting action. The St. Louis Blues looked much
better against the Columbus Blue Jackets than they looked against Carolina;
however, a late surge by the Blue Jackets spurred on by a pair of late penalty
calls resulted in a 5-3 defeat for the Blues.Blues Struggle Early

As with Friday';s game, the Blues struggled in the early going and were down
1-0 after just two minutes. Jordan Sambrook, who was a non-roster invitee of
the Blue Jackets, scored the first goal in the second minute, a lead the
Jackets would maintain until the final minute of the period. In the second, Sam
 Vigneault, who captained the Blue Jackets'; squad, and Kevin Stenlund, a
Swedish forward, scored to give the Blue Jackets a 3-1 lead going into the
second intermission.

The Blues continued to struggle on the power play Saturday, scoring only once
in six opportunities, including one 5-on-3 opportunity. These struggles matched
 the inefficiency of the club these prospects represented, as the NHL Blues
ranked 30th in power-play percentage last season.Erik Foley Injured

The one power play goal the Blues did score came off the stick of Erik Foley,
the power forward the Blues acquired in the deal that sent Paul Stastny to
Winnipeg at last season';s trade deadline. Foley';s goal came in the final
minute of the first period to tie the game at one, and it was
unassisted.Providence College forward Erik Foley. Photo: Providence College
Athletics

The joy for Foley was short-lived, though. Midway through the second period,
Foley slid hard into the boards behind the Blues'; net. Play stopped, as he
stayed down on the ice for some time. Foley was able to skate off under his own
 power, but he clutched his face in pain as he did so, and did not return to
the game. No news was yet available as of Saturday night as to the extent of
Foley';s injury, but hopefully it';s a minor one for the player, who was
expected to play in the AHL and possibly even push for NHL minutes this
season.Sean Allen with a Big Scrap

Fans of fisticuffs were treated to a rarity in today';s game: a fight. Two
giants squared off as Blues'; defenseman Sean Allen, 6-foot-3, and Blue
Jackets'; defenseman Ryan Collins, 6-foot-5, stood each other down five minutes
 into the third period in a 30-second dust off. In the end, it was Collins
whose back was on the ice, after a final right haymaker from Allen.

Video! #CBJ defenseman Ryan Collins and St. Louis defenseman Sean Allen drop
the gloves and fight. pic.twitter.com/XCFWNEnr0r

- Adam Jardy (@AdamJardy) September 8, 2018

Allen';s fight seemed to inspire the Blues, who scored the next two goals.
Tanner Kaspick, who has looked impressive all tournament, scored the first, off
 a slick backdoor feed by Blues'; defenseman and alternate captain Niko
Mikkola. The second third period goal was a beautiful connection between Robert
 Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, the Blues'; top two prospects. That kind of high
quality goal from those high quality prospects should excite Blues fans about
the future.Joel Hofer Impresses

Saturday was also the first start of the tournament for goalie Joel Hofer, and
the first opportunity many fans had to see the 2018 fourth-round pick in net.
Hofer';s size stands out: he';s 6-foot-3, and, at just 18 years old, he already
 fills a net. What impressed spectators in Traverse City wasn';t his size, but
his poise in goal.Joel Hofer of the Swift Current Broncos (courtesy Swift
Current Broncos)

Yes, Hofer allowed four goals (the Blue Jackets'; fifth goal was scored on an
empty net) but that does not do justice to his performance. None of the goals
he allowed were howlers - in fact, several of them were the immediate result of
 defensive mistakes that Hofer could not have hoped to save. He did make
several good saves, and always seemed to be strong on the puck and confident in
 handling it. Hofer is incredibly young, and goalies take longer to develop, so
 it will be several years before we even know whether he has an NHL future, but
 he made a strong showing in his first taste of NHL-level action.Two Days Left
in Traverse City

All eight teams in Traverse City will have an off day on Sunday. Practices are
set for Sunday morning and afternoon; however, no games will be played. The
Blues will return to action Monday evening, facing off against their arch
rivals, the Chicago Blackhawks. Puck drop is at 6:30 P.M. CT at West Rink, the
larger of the two venues in the Centre Ice facility. The surprising Blue
Jackets, who are now 2-0 in the tournament despite boasting arguably the
weakest farm system of all the teams in attendance, will take on the Carolina
Hurricanes and top prospect Andrei Svechnikov at 6:00 P.M. on Monday.

With two losses already, the Blues are firmly out of contention for the
Tournament';s prize, the Matthew Wuest Memorial Cup; however, a win on Monday
would not only give them a rivalry victory but would also take the Blackhawks
out of the running for the same prize. If Chicago beats St. Louis and Carolina
tops Columbus, the Blackhawks will advance to the final, but if Chicago loses,
the winner of the Carolina/Columbus game will be the finalist from the Gordie
Howe division. All eight teams will play in placement games on Tuesday, with
the Championship Game beginning at 6:00 P.M.

The Hockey Writers will continue to have coverage through the end of the
tournament. Be sure to check back Monday and Tuesday for more from Traverse
City.

The post Blues Lose Tight Game to the Blue Jackets in Traverse City appeared
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