We are just one sleep from Christmas! And for everyone, including those that don’t celebrate Christmas, may the holiday season bring you a time of rest and relaxation with family and friends and full of joy, love, and happiness. Furthermore, for today’s article, we hope the Christmas music helps get you in the spirit of the season. There are so many great holiday songs out there. Yet, it is hard to beat the classics, such as “The 12 Days of Christmas.” In honour of that classic song, we are going to give a rendition of the song today. Hockey fans, and Blues fans especially, we present to you, “The St. Louis Blues 12 Days of Christmas.”
The St. Louis Blues 12 Days of Christmas
The First Day of Christmas
On the first day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, a banner of Lord Stanley!
We started the Blues “12 Days of Christmas” with June 12, 2019. It is a day Blues fans will never forget. On that day, the Blues won their first-ever Stanley Cup with a 4-1 Game 7 win over the Boston Bruins. The October, the Blues raised the banner to the rafters at Enterprise Center. At long last, Lord Stanley had his banner in St. Louis.
The Second Day of Christmas
On the second day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The Blues have had many great goaltenders in their franchise history. This is especially true in the 21st century. While Jordan Binnington steals the title of the best with the Stanley Cup and most wins in franchise history, the 2011-12 season was special for Blues goalies. Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliott won the Jennings Trophy that season. They earned the award by allowing the fewest goals (165 collectively) in the league. Furthermore, Halak and Elliott helped the Blues win the Central Division and reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2009.
The Third Day of Christmas
On the third day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The most beloved name in Blues history is “Plager.” Bob Plager and Barclay Plager have their spot in Blues history. Both played for the Blues and have various coaching and front office roles. Bill Plager is the lesser-known brother. However, all three brothers played for the Blues for seasons with one another. In fact, head coach Scotty Bowman even once placed the brothers in the starting lineup as forwards one night, despite all three being defenceman, so all three could be on the ice together.
The Fourth Day of Christmas
On the fourth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The Blues have reached the Stanley Cup Final four times in franchise history. Impressively, they reached the Final in each of their first three seasons in the NHL: 1968, 1969, and 1970. Unfortunately, they were swept each time. However, they did become the first team in the post-expansion era to reach the Stanley Cup Final in their first season. They would remain the only team to do this until 2018. In 2019, the Blues reached their fourth final, where they finally claimed Lord Stanley.
The Fifth Day of Christmas
On the fifth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’S, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
#7 is a special number for the Blues. Many players have made contributions to the team while wearing the number. In fact, in 2011, the Blues honoured four former players to wear the numberRed Berenson, Garry Unger, Joe Mullen, and Keith Tkachuk. All four had memorable Blues careers. Furthermore, eight years later, another player would wear the number and would put his stamp in Blues history. We are, of course, referring to the hometown hero, Pat Maroon. In his only season wearing the Blue Note, Maroon played a key role on the Blues third line to help the team win the Stanley Cup. Furthermore, Maroon scored two game-winning goals in the Blues second-round series. The second game-winning goal came in double overtime of Game 7.
The Sixth Day of Christmas
On the sixth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’S, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
Speaking of Red Berenson, he had quite the game on November 7, 1968. On the road, Berenson scored six goals, including four in a nine-minute span. The feat was just one goal shy of the NHL record (seven goals by Joe Malone in 1920) and has only been matched once since (Darryl Sittler). It is the record for goals in a road game.
The Seventh Day of Christmas
On the seventh day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’S, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
We are using some creative liberties with this one. The Blues have many Game 7 heroes in franchise history. From Hall of Famer Pierre Turgeon‘s overtime-winning goal in Game 7 of the 1999 playoffs to the 38-save performance by Jordan Binnington in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2019, the Blues have seen players deliver. We cannot forget the Pat Maroon goal in 2019, nor can we forget Troy Brouwer beating his former team with a Game 7-winning goal in 2016. There is truly nothing like a seventh game of a playoff series.
The Eighth Day of Christmas
On the eighth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, eight alumni goals, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’S, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The Blues hosted the 2017 Winter Classic. Vladimir Tarasenko scored two goals as the Blue Note beat the rival Chicago Blackhawks at Busch Stadium. Two days prior, alumni of the Blues and Blackhawks faced off at Busch Stadium. The Blues alumni beat the Hawks alumni, 8-7. Pierre Turgeon scored the winning goal and was the only Blues alum to score twice. Martin Brodeur got the win between the pipes for the Blues alumni.
The Ninth Day of Christmas
On the ninth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, nine special numbers, eight alumni goals, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’s, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The Blues currently have nine numbers that are retired or honoured in the rafters of the Enterprise Center. The Blues have eight retired numbers: Al MacInnis (#2), Bob Gassoff (#3), Bob Plager (#5), Barclay Plager (#8), Brian Sutter (#11), Brett Hull (#16), Bernie Federko (#24), and Chris Pronger (#44). Furthermore, the Blues also honour Doug Wickenheiser (#14), who scored a memorable-goal in Blues history, but sadly died of cancer in 1999.
The Tenth Day of Christmas
On the tenth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, ten division titles, nine special numbers, eight alumni goals, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’s, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley!
The Blues have won ten division titles in franchise history. Their first came in their second season in 1969. Since then, they have won their division in 1970, 1977, 1981, 1985, 1987, 2000, 2012, 2015, and 2020.
The Eleventh Day of Christmas
On the eleventh day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, eleven-straight wins, ten division titles, nine special numbers, eight alumni goals, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’s, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley.
Before the Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2019, they had to overcome a last-place spot in the standings. One of the things that propelled them towards the top of the standings was an 11-game winning streak. The Blue Note picked up 22 points in these 11 games. When you consider the Blues went from last place to 99 points and almost the division, it is clear the impact that winning streak had on the team.
The Twelfth Day of Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas, the Blues gave to me, 12th of May miracles, eleven-straight wins, ten division titles, nine special numbers, eight alumni goals, seventh game heroes, six Berenson tallies, FIVE MEMORABLE 7’s, four Final trips, three Plager brothers, two Jennings winners, and a banner of Lord Stanley.
We conclude the Blues “12 Days of Christmas” with the Monday Night Miracle. On May 12, 1986, the Blues were facing elimination in Game 6 of the Campbell Conference Final. Furthermore, they trailed the Calgary Flames 5-2 with 12 minutes remaining in the third period. The Blues rallied to make it 5-4, and tied the game with under two minutes left. In overtime, Doug Wickenheiser won the game for the Blues. It took a miracle, but the Blues found it.
We conclude the Blues “12 Days of Christmas” rendition with the highlights of this miraculous comeback.
Main Photo: Jeff Curry – Imagn Images
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