The Blues open up a four-game homestand on Thursday and are coming into the game on a three-game winning streak. They outscored their opponents 16-4 over their last three games, and their leading scorer, Jordan Kyrou, has been red-hot with five goals over his previous three outings.

The focus on their next game was the most consistent thing said by the Canucks after their game against the Jets on Tuesday. Even after a dominant 6-2 win over the league’s top team, the group had already focused on the importance of Thursday night’s matchup with the Blues.

“After the Utah loss, like I said to you guys, we got to let it go. It’s the same thing here,” said Tocchet after Tuesday’s win. “This is great. Enjoy it for five minutes [but] we got to get back to the reality that we got to go into St Louis. I mean, that’s just the world we live in. You got to love the game for a while, and then you just got to get focused. It is no different if you lose a game; that’s how you got to do it nowadays.”

The Canucks picked up a win at Rogers Arena in the first matchup of the season between the two clubs, but the Blues took round two in their home barn. With how tight the standings are, each of these two teams knows how vital Thursday’s game is, and the intensity should be through the roof on Thursday.

Thursday’s game is a 4:30 p.m. PT start, and you can watch it on Sportsnet or listen along to the radio call with Brendan Batchelor on Sportsnet 650 and the Sportsnet Radio Network.