St. Louis Blues try to live up to the anticipation

Last year's team finished in the playoffs despite a string of injuries, and General Manager John Davidson says they are capable of getting there again. Next up: the Ducks.

Injuries began hitting the St. Louis Blues last season before they even played a real game, starting when defenseman Erik Johnson tore up his knee in a golf cart accident during a team outing in September and never really stopping.

Eric Brewer, Paul Kariya, T.J. Oshie and Andy McDonald also missed significant chunks of playing time, robbing the Blues of depth on defense and of scoring threats. Playing a defense-first style -- they had no choice -- and backed by strong second-half goaltending from Chris Mason, they banded together to finish at 41-31-10 and earned the sixth seed in the West, a tribute to Coach Andy Murray's ability to create a lot out of little.

"We were almost in shock, with something bad happening almost every night," said John Davidson, the Blues' general manager.

"But the players were led by Andy and they did a heck of a job saying, 'You know, it is what it is. Let's go.' And once we settled everybody down, we got some players to believe in themselves."

Everyone has healed, and without those ruinous injuries the Blues should be consistently competitive. But they're 2-2-1 as they arrive in Anaheim to face the Ducks on Saturday night at the Honda Center, still trying to live up to the anticipation they created with their unlikely success last season.

"It's raised expectations, no question about that, especially when our record is as good as it was," Davidson said. "There's nothing wrong with that. If you don't believe in that, then you're in the wrong business. It's about taking a step at a time. There's no elevator to the top. You have to go step by step by step.

"There's going to be ups and there's going to be downs. There's going to be hard times ahead for every team. We have to be able to minimize that as much as possible in this conference and in turn make sure our young players, in particular, really take another step."

He said he's not worried about older players such as Keith Tkachuk, who leads the Blues with three goals and six points, or Paul Kariya, rejuvenated after two hip surgeries and second in team scoring with three goals and five points.

"He's such a dedicated guy," Davidson said of Kariya, a former Duck. "He feels his speed is going to be back to where it should have been. He should be durable to sustain his speed for a longer period of time on the ice, and he's also really taken advantage of the time to make his body stronger. It's a tough league. The giants of the league have to get into traffic and play hard. He's got the touch.

"We'll see where it goes. It's very, very early for everybody."

True enough, and surprising starts by the Avalanche and Coyotes have scrambled the standings in the West and contributed toward pushing the Blues toward the bottom.

They'll have to sort themselves out at some point if they're going to make a move.

To Davidson, they're capable of it. He said they not only learned last season how to handle the pressure of fighting for a playoff spot but also what it takes to stay in the playoffs after being swept by the Vancouver Canucks in the first round. The Blues got a taste of playing on an even bigger stage when they opened this season in Sweden against the fan-favored Detroit Red Wings in a pair of games showcased by the NHL.

"Our players went through that experience of the playoffs and that's in their bank account now regarding experience. The trip to Sweden is in the bank account now too," he said.

"We're just hoping our club builds on that and uses that as a factor to have an understanding of how good you have to be and how hard you have to play and how dedicated you need to be. It's a tough, tough, tough conference and it's getting better. Look at the way Phoenix is playing early. Look at the way L.A. is playing early. Look at the way Colorado is playing early. It's going to be real tough."

In terms of injuries, the season has been tougher on him than on his players.

The genial Davidson, a former NHL goalie and standout broadcaster in the U.S. and Canada, is facing carpal tunnel surgery on both hands and needs a replacement for one of his knee replacements. Worrying about those issues has distracted him from planning the speech he will deliver at the Hockey Hall of Fame on Nov. 9, when he will receive the Foster Hewitt memorial award for contributions to hockey broadcasting.

"I've been so busy, but I've got to start thinking about it," he said. "I'm really looking forward to it for my family."

If all goes right, he should have a good season to look forward to, as well.

helene.elliott@latimes.com