It's a Big Night for the Penguins - Here's What's Really at Stake at PPG Paints Arena

The Penguins entertain the ailing St. Louis Blues tonight at home in PPG Paints Arena before embarking to Philadelphia for a heartfelt back-to-back game on Tuesday against the Flyers.

The Penguins then continue a grueling road trip with Minnesota, Winnipeg, and Toronto waiting.

The Blues have been struggling, having lost their last three in a row (0-2-1), including a 6-4 stunning loss in Detroit after blowing a 4-0 lead. They're 1-3-1 in their last five games.

Pittsburgh, on the other hand, got points in both games last season (1-0-1) and won't play St. Louis again until the last weekend of the regular season in April.

One of the new storylines is the return of Ville Koivunen, who was recalled after 11 points in six games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

He will replace injured Rickard Rakell, and rookie Ben Kindel will stay with the top power-play group, more proof that he's sticking around longer than his nine-game tryout.

The right-wing shooter will get the headlining chance on the PP tonight alongside Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

St. Louis ranks 24th on the penalty kill (72.0%) but has managed to stay out of the box with only 25 penalties in eight games. That will come into play against a Pittsburgh power play that is warming up, scoring on five of its past ten opportunities.

The Penguins have been outshot lately, but still receive solid goaltending and timely scoring. Against a defense-beset Blues team, this might be the opportunity for Pittsburgh to gain some traction going into their wacky week on the road.