Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Blues set new franchise record for wins, but ‘tomorrow it really means nothing’

St. Louis Blues v Minnesota Wild

ST PAUL, MN - MARCH 9: Brian Elliott #1 of the St. Louis Blues blocks a shot during the overtime period of the game against the Minnesota Wild on March 9, 2014 at Xcel Energy Center in St Paul, Minnesota. The Blues defeated the Wild 3-2 in a shootout. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)

Hannah Foslien

The St. Louis Blues defeated the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday, achieving a new franchise record for wins in a regular season with 52.

That beats the club’s old record, set by the 1999-2000 team that won the Presidents’ Trophy. This season’s edition of the Blues is also in the running to be the league’s top regular season team. At 111 points, they are tied with the Boston Bruins for the top team in the NHL.

"(The record) is a special thing, but tomorrow it really means nothing,” goaltender Brian Elliott told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Thursday night’s game - a 2-1 victory for the Blues - was the first meeting the two teams since Ryan Miller was traded out of Buffalo to St. Louis in a pre-deadline day blockbuster.

Elliott, however, got the start in goal for the Blues. He made 24 saves to improve his record to 18-5-2 this season.

As impressive as the new franchise record is for the Blues, head coach Ken Hitchcock quelled any kind of over-excitement on the occasion, praising the 1999-2000 team.

“The teams that had 51 [wins], there also were ties, so I think you’ve got to be realistic there,” Hitchcock said, as per NHL.com. “It’s a different era now because you’re getting those extra points in shootouts and overtimes and stuff like that.

“I coached against those teams that got the big points and they were awesome teams here ... awesome. It’s a nice record, but it’s an improper evaluation. I don’t think it’s fair to that group that got that 51 wins because I know about that group. They were not fun to play against ... not fun at all.”

Follow @CamTucker_Metro