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Posted at 12:00 PM EST.

8:05 PM EST. OT included. St. Louis missed the playoffs by one point in 2017-18, then GM Doug Armstrong made several significant moves over the summer. Trading for Ryan O’Reilly and signing Tyler Bozak creates an above-average trio at center with Brayden Schenn. Patrick Maroon and David Perron signed as UFAs, add veteran scoring on the wings, while Robby Fabbri, still just 22, returns after missing a year-and-a-half with a torn ACL. The Blues’ inability to find offense outside their powerhouse line of Schenn, Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko has been addressed by Armstrong and we haven’t even addressed the exciting forward prospects.

The Blue Notes hosted Winnipeg on opening night and got blasted 5-1, which was perhaps the most misleading score of the night. Connor Hellebucyk was the star of the night, as he kicked aside 41 of 42 shots. St. Louis outshot the Jets 42-25 and out-chanced them by 10. That game was 1-0 about midway through the third period when Winnipeg was under siege but it scored a shorty to open the floodgates and the final read a misleading 5-1.

Chicago opened with a 4-3 OT victory in Ottawa but needed to rally more than once to get that win, which is not a good sign for them, as Ottawa has nothing but holes and flaws in their lineup. Both teams created 28 scoring chances in that game and now the Blackhawks take a massive step up in class against a hungry and vastly superior host. First off, Cam Ward, 34, was one of the league’s worst regulars last year, so Chicago’s goaltending is in big trouble right off the bat. The Blackhawks’ scoring also isn’t a lock to rebound. They averaged their second-fewest goals per game since Kane’s rookie season of 2007-08, the power play was one of the worst and they made no impactful roster moves up front. Soon-to-be 39-year-old Chris Kunitz doesn’t cut it.

The blueline is Chicago’s biggest weakness by far. Keith is 35 and overworked as the team’s No. 1 D-man, especially given how much Keith Seabrook’s game has declined. The Hawks lack depth on defense and it didn’t help when they dealt Jordan Oesterle in the off-season. The 2017-18 team allowed the most shots and goals of the Quenneville era. That trend figures to continue and while Chicago still has talent up front, they are too slow and too weak behind its own blueline. Cam Ward playing behind this defense must be attacked and we’ll put that to the test here.

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