The St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks met for their second game this season Friday night in downtown St. Louis. The Blues emerged victorious, 3-2, evening the season series. Let’s get into the recap and see how we got here.
First Period
The Blues struck first 3:41 into the game. Defenseman Logan Mailloux jumped into the play and skated down the left side in the offensive zone. Mailloux fired in a wrist shot for his first goal as a Blue. The Ontario native received a fighting major later in the period, putting him two-thirds of the way to a Gordie Howe Hat Trick.
Forward Matt Luff scored his first goal as a Blue at 11:48. Robby Fabbri recorded an assist, his second in as many games since rejoining the Blues.
It was fitting that a No. 39 scored for the Blues on a night where the organization honored Kelly Chase, a former No. 39 who is battling cancer. Friday night was the team’s annual “Hockey Fights Cancer” night, a night to raise awareness and support for those battling cancer.
Related: The Top 5 Best Blues’ Enforcers of All Time
Wyatt Kaiser got the Blackhawks on the board at 15:50, cutting the deficit in half. It would be the final goal of the first period.
The Blues outshot the Blackhawks in the first period, 11-6.
Second Period
The only goal of the second period belonged to Justin Faulk and the Blues. The goal came at 8:57.
The game saw its second fight at 16:04. Dylan Holloway and Connor Murphy dropped the gloves and exchanged holiday greetings.
The Blackhawks outshot the Blues in the second period, 12-9.
Third Period
Both teams traded chances throughout most of the third period. However, the Blackhawks broke through when Connor Bedard stole the puck and fed Andre Burakovsky to make it a 3-2 game with just under six minutes left.
Holloway had an opportunity on a breakaway with about 2:30 left to make it a 4-2 game, but his shot hit both goal posts.
The Blackhawks pulled the goalie with two minutes left, seeking the equalizer. The team struggled to generate sustained pressure with the extra attacker. The Blues consistently got the puck out of the defensive zone and prevented the Blackhawks from establishing a forecheck.
The Blackhawks got one final chance with 0.8 seconds left, but Joel Hofer stopped Tyler Bertuzzi’s attempt at a buzzer-beater. Adding insult to injury, Bedard left the ice in obvious pain after taking a hit from Brayden Schenn off the ensuing faceoff.
Despite losing, the Blackhawks outshot the Blues in the third period, 11-6, as well for the game, 29-26.
What’s Next?
The Blues will remain at home to host the Nashville Predators, hoping to avenge their rough loss in Nashville on Thursday.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, return home for a Saturday night game with the Detroit Red Wings.
