from Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch,

Added Backes: “We’ve played the Eastern Conference champ (Rangers) and now we’re going to play the Stanley Cup champs ... two out of the first three games. We’re going to see what kind of gumption we have, what kind of resolve we have. If we beat them, it’s going to be a feather in our cap. If we’re not up to it, it’s going to be another reality check that we’ve got a ton of work to do. We’re going to do everything we can the next few days to get ourselves on the good side of that coin.”

While the Blues will be evaluated by the final result, the more accurate measurement in the team’s eyes is continuing to cement its identity. They got it back Saturday and now they want to keep it.

“It’s not about wins and losses early on,” Shattenkirk said. “I think the team that gets to their disciplined, structured game quickly and follows the game plan are the teams that have success early on in the season. And we’ve been able to do that in the past and get off to some good starts.

“It’s going to be important that we do it again this year. We have some tough tests ahead of us and the key is, when we’re in those hostile environments, to stick with it and trust our game plan that the coaches put forward and know that our abilities in this locker room are going allow us to execute and be successful.”

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