Mathieu and Pierre-Olivier Joseph made their first appearance in a St. Louis Blues jersey Saturday night and showcased why management acquired them

The St. Louis Blues opened up their preseason last night against the Dallas Stars and a couple of new faces in the organization made their debuts. 

The Joseph brothers, Mathieu and Pierre-Olivier, wore the Blues jersey for the first time on Saturday night and showcased a similar quality that the team clearly liked about them both: speed.

Pierre-Olivier had the busier night of the two, logging the fourth-most ice time amongst Blues defensemen (21:42), and was utilized on the penalty kill and powerplay. 

The first game back is always a shaky one for every player and Pierre-Olivier certainly showcased some rust in the opening frame. His mobility and puck-carrying ability were not an issue and were on display, but his passes were off the mark, and handcuffed his teammates coming through the neutral zone. 

That rust and the new team jitters seemed to have worn off after the first intermission, as his passing accuracy improved in the second and third periods, and he got the puck up to his forwards with precision and on time for them to make a play with it. 

Pierre-Olivier's skating is the hallmark of his game. He showcased his ability to close gaps swiftly using his feet and long reach and forced zone entries out towards the boards on almost all occasions when his opponents came down his side of the ice.

One area where he could clean up for his next outing was the timing of his pinches in the neutral zone. He was stepping up often to squash the transition attack early on, but Dallas was still able to get the pucks around him and gain possession in the offensive zone. 

However, it was a strong showing for the younger Joseph brother, who needs to impress with every opportunity he gets as he's in a battle to win out a spot on St. Louis's third pair to start the season. 

The older Joseph brother, Mathieu, on the other hand, had a very quiet debut. He played on a line with Zach Dean and Kasperi Kapanen, and they scored the only goal for St. Louis in their 2-1 loss.

Mathieu logged 13:18 of ice time with no shots on goal and blocked one shot. What was evidently noticeable was his incredible acceleration and pace in his game.

GM Doug Armstrong wanted his team to get faster. Well, adding Mathieu Joseph certainly helps accomplish that. You could see his speedy presence on the forecheck, acting as an aggressive F1 or the support F2. He also played on the penalty kill, which is a spot he will most likely presume in the regular season. 

Mathieu's play with the puck was simple. When he got the puck he made smart and safe plays and did not turn it over. Hopefully next game he can spend more time with it, however, and generate more offense. 

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