Good morning, St. Louis

Good morning, Insiders, and good morning… St. Louis?

We’re apparently back in St. Louis, one month and one day after having last visited the Big River. This was a shock to me, because in my sleepwalking daze last night, I stumbled towards a hotel room that checked off none of the Bright Lights/Big City, Metal Grommet Apocalypse or Ventilation Vibration boxes. There’s actually a view of the arch from the fifth floor! I’ve never been this lucky. Time to head over to Casino Queen and place all my per diem on black. ::ball lands on red:: Welp! That’s the end of me.

Sadly, there won’t be any visits to Charlie Gitto’s this year. A downtown institution – there are also location on The Hill, 15 minutes west of downtown, as well as Chesterfield and Maryland Heights – the restaurant has been an integral part of Central Division travel with its homestyle midwestern Italian fare and wonderful hospitality, and that’s the sentiment shared by lots of teams that visit the Blues and Cardinals, not just the Kings. There would be nights in which the broadcasters, bloggers and media would occupy one table, team management would be seated at another, and then a small group or two of players were scattered around the back of the dining room. If you were to X-ray Jim Fox, you would find that 1.19% of his skeletal structure is actually the Charlie Gitto’s House Salad.

But because we last had a night off in St. Louis on a Sunday, when the restaurant was closed, and because this visit completes a back-to-back, there will be no Charlie Gitto trips until either the spring or next season. I feel like cartoonishly punching a hole through my top hat. Do us a favor: if you visit St. Louis in the next year, pay Charlie a visit and tell him we miss him.

There won’t be any morning skate today, so we’ll learn tonight’s lines, pairings and starting goaltender during warm-ups. Enjoy your Friday, Insiders. There’s a WUWTK to come.