Blues make significant changes to lineup ahead of tonight’s Game 7

While only one head coach between Bruins’ Bruce Cassidy or Blues’ Craig Berube will get his name on the Stanley Cup after tonight’s Game 7 in Boston, they first need to focus on the strategy of the contest and playing their best game.

And it started off for Berube earlier today when he announced the significant changes he made to his lineup ahead of the last game of the season.

It has been confirmed that Ivan Barbashev will return for the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, he who was unavailable for a 5-1 loss in Game 6 on Sunday as he served a one-game suspension following an illegal check to the head of Bruins forward Marcus Johansson in Game 5 last Thursday.

Robert Thomas, who returned for Game 6 to replace Barbashev after missing four games with an undisclosed injury, will step out of the lineup for Barbashev, but he isn’t the only player out.

Berube also noted that Robert Bortuzzo won’t play tonight see that fellow defensemen Alex Pietrangelo and Colton Parayko are expected to play heavy minutes on right side, leaving few minutes for Boztuzzo.

Joel Edmundson will step in instead.

Berube said Thomas is out - coach’s decision.

Edmundson in for Bortuzzo. Said with Pietrangelo and Parayko playing heavy minutes on right side, not much time for Bortuzzo, so going with four lefties instead
— Tom Gulitti (@TomGulittiNHL) June 12, 2019