Player to watch vs. Penguins: Kasperi Kapanen

My player to watch for the St. Louis Blues against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday is forward Kasperi Kapanen.

Kapanen will be making his first trip to Pittsburgh since the Penguins waived him on Feb. 24, 2023.

The Blues claimed Kapanen, who had a $3.2 million cap hit remaining on his contract through this season, and there will be some motivation for him facing his former mates in Pittsburgh.

Kapanen had two assists when the Blues downed the Penguins 4-2 on Oct. 21 in St. Louis, but he's gone 21 straight games without scoring a goal and would love nothing more than to end that drought in a building where he was a fan favorite.

Kapanen has been skating well, and recently, Blues interim coach Drew Bannister said he's liked Kapanen's game away from the puck and he's doing the little things to keep his game going, but if there was ever any motivation, if there was ever going to be a game he'd get amped up to score, this might be just the one.