Elliott is Number One, Not Just on His Back and Sleeves

Brian Elliott leads the NHL in GAA, Save%, and Shutouts. He has allowed more than two goals only once this season. He would most likely lead the NHL in wins if he would get more starts.

This weekend Elliott watched back-to-back games from the bench. That's right, on an occasion which is almost always split between starter/backup goalies, the hottest goalie in the league watched from the bench.

Hitchcock says he wanted to see how Halak performed in back-to-back situations. Now we know the answer: decent, and nowhere near as well as Elliott has played this season.

It is no question that Halak's game has turned around since Hitchcock took over. Of course, it was not that hard to turn around such a poor start to the season, and such an inconsistent last season.

Do not get me wrong, Halak has been great since Hitch took the helm, but Elliott has been beyond great. He gives the Blues a chance to win every single night he is in the net. Halak is notorious for giving up that "backbreaking" goal at the wrong time. Elliott makes that "backbreaking" save at the right time. Simply put: Elliott has been more consistent and better than Halak, before and after the coaching change. The best argument is this: Halak is 6-7-4 and Elliott 13-2. That is all there is to say, the Blues win when Elliott is in.

Having two quality goalies is great and should not be overlooked. At the very least, ride the Elliott horse while you can. Either he stays hot for a while then fizzles, and you can start your big contract goalie, or he stays this hot all season, and St. Louis is a Stanley Cup contender come April. He's been that good.