Say, was that defensive prospect Alex Pietrangelo making a positive difference Saturday night at Scottrade Center?

Apparently it was. In a rare sighting at the NHL level, he flashed his high-end skills and scored the Blues’ only goal in a 4-1 loss.

Pietrangelo made some mistakes here and there, like getting caught on a failed pinch attempt at the left point as Dallas blew the game open. But there is no question he can generate some offense for the inconsistent Blues attack.

With Carlo Colaiacovo likely to miss time with his “upper body” injury, this would be a good time to give Alex an extended look. He has played just two games this season – so he can play seven more before the team has to decide whether to keep him or send him back to junior hockey for another year.

On another front, AHL opponents can’t stop offensive defenseman Jonas Junland, they can only hope to contain him. He scored his fifth goal of the season Saturday night.

AROUND THE RINKS: That was bad news for tough guy D.J. King, who got hurt while beating Krys Barch into the ice. The big kid can’t catch a break. . . .  Also, the timing of T.J. Oshie’s appendectomy wasn’t great. He exited the lineup just as the Note was trying to build momentum again . . . Nice guy Jeff Woywitka is getting a good opportunity to extend his career in Dallas . . . The Thrashers are bracing for bad news about winger Ilya Kovalchuk, who is sidelined by a foot injury. Kovalchuk has already scored nine goals for Atlanta this season . . . HockeyBuzz.com keeps promoting Alexander Frolov trade rumors, but he created some excellent offensive chances for the emerging in the game Hockey Guy watched Saturday night. LA would like to add an established defensemen, so speculation about a LA-Chicago trade does make some sense.