Sounds all in to me.

And since we are, let me say a thing or two to the "samo" crowd.

First, rookie Parayko. In October, I said he reminded me of Pronger. And he does, in certain aspects. He's not mean like Pronger was, but he is as BIG, uses his body well, and pretty much effectively glides/protects the puck in the same fashion.

On offense, he is not so Pronger like. He is faster. He has softer hands and he has a better shot.

NO, I am not saying he's a HOF'er, not saying he's better than Pronger. But at 22 years, this kid has at least a chance to be very special. And he's cool as a cucumber.

Then there's rookie Edmunson. Tenacious, big, skilled body that loves to get in the dirty spots. Has proven himself over and over to be trusted and good enough to move up to the 4 spot. The kid really showed something last night when he took on the almighty himself in the Blues crease. That was pretty cool.

These two guys (along with Bortuzzo imo) have put an edge on this defense that this team could only dream about last year. They are young, inexperienced and probably going to learn a thing or two this April, but they don't know about any Blues spell or jinx or curse.

IMO, one thing Hitch can do is switch up the pairings. Jbo and Petro need to split up. Let each of them have one of these rookies to dish out some pain. They are ready for this kind of role.

Who ever they draw round 1 is going to be a tough match up. I am not predicting anything other than my belief that this team won't be folding for anybody. Those days are gone.