Hello, David Backes.

The Blues power forward continues to muscle up this season, helping fill the void of injured teammates.

His development is terrific news for the Note. He has become more than a feared hit man. He has become an impact offensive player – a cornerstone for the team’s rebuilding process.

He scored a goal and added an assist in the huge 6-4 victory at Vancouver. He showed the Canucks what they could have been, had the Blues not matched Vancouver’s offer sheet last summer.

Backes has scored six points in his last five games. With playmaking center Andy McDonald coming back, the Note could be even more dangerous on the power play.

Overall, this winning performance was a big breakthrough for the Blues, who spoiled Matt Sundin’s home debut.

FOREIGNERS FUED

Mikhail Grabovski of the Toronto Maple Leafs has issues with Montreal’s Sergei Kostitsyn.

“I think he is not Belarusian now, he is French because I never fight with Belarusian guys,” he told Toronto’s Fan 590. “I don’t know why he wants to fight with me. If he wants to fight, we’ll go in the street and every minute of every day I’ll wait for him and we’ll fight.”

Somewhere out there in the Great Beyond, John “Rambo” Kordic is smiling.

Grabovski was so eager to get at Kostitsyn that he pushed NHL linesman Scott Cherrey late in Thursday’s 6-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

THE JAGR WATCH

Jaromir Jagr is under contract to his Russian team through next season, but that hasn’t stopped speculation that he could bolt to the NHL before that deal expires. The KHL is in economic trouble, so paying Jagr’s huge salary could become problematic.

Jagr told The Hockey News that he would love to finish his career in Pittsburgh. “I would play for the minimum salary,” he said. “I would play for $350,000 just for him because I owe him my hockey life. I want to pay him back because he has made me what I am . . . besides my parents.”

By the way, Wayne Fleming apparently is still coaching Jagr’s team, Avangard Omsk. His bosses “benched” him recently, removing him from the bench between periods, but they didn’t actually fire him.

AROUND THE RINKS: The struggle for Lightning rookie Steven Stamkos continues. The top pick in the 2008 NHL Draft was a healthy scratch Friday night . . . Also sitting out as a healthy scratch was Capitals center Michael Nylander, who scored just two points in his last 10 games . . . The Senators, desperate for better goaltending, are taking a long look at Brian Elliott: In 30 games in the AHL this season, he was 18-8-1 with a 2.31 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage . . . The Oilers lost Sheldon Souray to an upper body injury . . . The Senators defenseman Filip Kuba returned after missing eight games with a groin muscle injury . . . Kings center Anze Kopitar went 10 games without scoring a goal . . . Defenseman Ryan Turek, a Blues draft pick, will start his pro career in Alaska of the ECHL. The Rivermen took a look at him after Michigan State dismissed him from its team, then farmed him out . . . On the other hand, forward Matt Foy, an off-season free agent addition, will finally make his debut in Peoria after recovering from a sports hernia . . . The Sharks have moved Jonathan Cheechoo back into a checking line role. What’s wrong with this guy? “One of the road blocks is perhaps is the fact that he scored 56 goals,” San Jose coach Todd McLellan said. “The microscope is on him night in and night out. Perhaps if he had only scored 35, we’d be somewhat happy with his impact on the game right now. But the fact that he has scored 56 and everyone is aware of it, makes it a little tougher for him.”