ST. LOUIS — For a team, like the Blues, that is treading water in the standings, there’s no better opponent to come across than the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Blues did not play their best on Thursday, but it was good enough to get them a 3-1 win and even if it’s against the floundering Blackhawks, the points count the same in the standings. The Blues snapped a three-game losing streak or, for those preferring a stat that sounds better, got points for the eighth time in the past nine games, though they got two for just the fifth time in those nine games.
The stars of the night were the Blues' fourth line, in this instance Josh Leivo, Nathan Walker and Alexey Toropchenko. Against Toronto, when the line had Logan Brown in instead of Walker, the line was barely seen after the first period. But against Chicago, they had a steady presence on both sides of the puck and got ice time late in the game as the Blues protected a one-goal lead. Leivo scored the first goal and the group was on the ice for the second goal, from defenseman Calle Rosen. Brandon Saad added an empty-net goal with 10.9 seconds left.
The Blues were without forward Vladimir Tarasenko, who missed the game with an illness. The tough-luck player of the night for the Blues was forward Brayden Schenn, who had a career-high 11 shots on goal – 9 after two periods – but couldn’t score. It was the most shots on goal by a Blue since Alexander Steen had 11 on Jan. 2, 2015.
The Blues close out the 2022 calendar on Saturday with a 5 p.m. game against Minnesota.
Rosen on the spot
Calle Rosen, who has moved back into the lineup because of the injury to Torey Krug, got his second goal in as many games to put the Blues up 2-1 in the second period.
Chicago’s Boris Katchouk cleared the puck out of the corner, and sent it right into the slot, where there were no Blackhawks but there was Rosen. He came in alone on goalie Alex Stalock and beat him for this fourth goal of the season.
Rosen has gotten those goals in just 19 games, which is a 16-goal pace, though he won’t get near that because he’s been a healthy scratch in 17 games this season, though he looks now to be a regular in the lineup until Krug comes back.
Rosen was paired Thursday with Robert Bortuzzo, as Blues coach Craig Berube switched up his defensive pairings, putting Niko Mikkola with Colton Parayko and Nick Leddy with Justin Faulk.
The Blues had control of the puck for much of the second period, though that was the only goal they got. It looked like they might get one on a power play early in the period when Logan Brown looked poised to knock an airborne puck into the net, but Stalock swung (or threw) his stick at the puck, knocking it out of the air and away from his net.
Tarasenko out, fourth line scores
Tarasenko took part in the morning skate on Thursday, but by game time that night, he was sick and scratched from the lineup.
That led to some rearranging of the lines, with Ivan Barbashev moving into his spot alongside Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou on a line that was very effective at the start of the Blues pre-Christmas trip. Logan Brown moved into Barbashev’s spot alongside Noel Acciari and Brandon Saad and Nathan Walker jumped into the lineup, playing with Alexey Toropchenko and Josh Leivo.
And that last group came up with the first goal of the game, though with some help from referee Marc Joannette. Chicago’s Jack Johnson was trying to play the puck behind his net, but it hit Joannette’s skate and bounced away from the end boards. Toropchenko was there to grab it, pass between his legs to Walker, who handed it off to Leivo with the better angle for an easy goal, his third of the season.
Kane still Kane
Patrick Kane has the most goals against the Blues of any active NHL player (and points too) and he increased his total to 27 with a power-play goal in the first period. With Robert Thomas off for tripping – just the third penalty this season for Thomas – Kane crept in from the blueline and shot through traffic over Jordan Binnington’s glove.
