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Blues Make Coaching Change As Blackhawks Head To St. Louis

ST. LOUIS (AP) — New St. Louis Blues coach Ken Hitchcock plans no major changes to a team off to a stumbling start.

Hitchcock was introduced Monday as the successor to Davis Payne. He believes the Blues have the talent to be a playoff team but lack consistency.

The Blues dismissed Payne after a 6-7 start that left them in 14th place in the Western Conference in favor of a man with more than 1,000 games of coaching experience. General manager Doug Armstrong says he thought the team was underachieving.

Before getting the call from Armstrong on Sunday, Hitchcock had been a consultant with the Columbus Blue Jackets, who fired him as coach last season.

The Blues welcome the Blackhawks to St. Louis Tuesday night at 7 p.m.

Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

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