BLUES The St. Louis Blues fell behind early en route to a difficult loss to Nashville on Friday afternoon. Pavel Buchnevich, Robert Thomas and Jake Neighbours scored, but the Blues ultimately fell 8-3 to the Predators.
"Puck play and puck battles were not very good tonight," said Craig Berube. "Sometimes we just don't stick with the plan - we get away from the gameplan because we're down, and there's no reason to (do that)."
The Blues will look to shake off Friday's game quickly, continuing their run of four straight games against the Central Division with a pair of road matchups in Chicago and Minnesota. With a record of just 3-5-1 against their own division this year, the Blues are aiming to get their footing back in these crucial games.
They visit the Blackhawks with a record of 10-8-1 on the season, worth 21 points and fourth in the Central.
BLACKHAWKS Though the win column has yet to catch up, the arrival of Connor Bedard gives the Chicago Blackhawks a great deal of optimism.
Drafted first overall this summer, the 18-year-old Bedard already has 10 goals and seven assists to begin his NHL career. Philipp Kurashev and Jason Dickinson follow up Bedard's point contributions at 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The Blackhawks snapped a five-game losing streak on Wednesday night, beating the Maple Leafs 4-3 in overtime. Down 3-1 in the second period, Dickinson scored a pair of goals to secure his first career hat trick and even the score. Kevin Korchinski eventually won the game with 30 seconds left in the overtime period.
Sunday's early matchup with the Blues is Chicago's second of three straight at United Center. Afterwards, they travel for three in a row against Detroit, Winnipeg and Minnesota.
The Blackhawks host the Blues with a record of 6-12-0, worth 12 points and eighth in the Central Division.
HEAD TO HEAD The Blues went 3-1-0 against Chicago last season, including 5-2 and 5-3 wins at United Center. The Blues are 10-1-2 in their last 13 games against the Blackhawks, preparing for their 328th all-time battle.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
BLUES Robert Thomas, who scored his team-leading eighth goal of the season on Friday vs. Nashville. Thomas leads the Blues in goals, assists and points this season, on pace for a career-high 34 goals as the first-quarter mark of the season approaches.
BLACKHAWKS Connor Bedard, leading the Blackhawks as a rookie with 17 points in the first 18 games of his NHL career. Bedard has four more goals and five more points than the second-place rookies, including an active four-game point streak heading into Sunday's matchup.
BLUE NOTES
Several team dads and other guests will join the Blues on the upcoming road trip, continuing the Dads' Trip tradition. Including a 2-0-0 record in last year's Moms' Trip, the Blues are 9-1-1 in road trip games with their parents and guests
The Blues have faced the Blackhawks more than any other team in the NHL, their 327 previous matchups outpacing the Blues' second most-played opponent (Dallas) by 23 games
The Blues are 24-for-26 (92.3%) on the penalty kill in road games this season, the second best figure in the NHL
The Blues are the only team in the League this season undefeated in games where they score first, currently at 9-0-0 in such games
Wednesday night in Arizona saw the Blues score two shorthanded goals 33 seconds apart, marking the second fastest two shorthanded goals in franchise history and the fifth time two Blues have ever scored shorthanded goals during the same penalty
After stopping a five-game skid with Friday's overtime victory, the Chicago Blackhawks will vie for consecutive victories for the first time this season when the St. Louis Blues visit on Sunday afternoon.
Chicago is confident a newfound surge can carry over to the second contest of a three-game homestand. The Blackhawks tied Friday's contest against the Toronto Maple Leafs 15 seconds into the third period when Jason Dickinson completed a natural hat trick. Rookie defenseman Kevin Korchinski's goal 4:30 into overtime gave Chicago a 4-3 victory.
"That was a blast," Dickinson said. "I felt like the energy was there, the emotions were in it. Everybody was having fun out there.
"I think it comes down to getting physical and getting engaged and being invested emotionally. Obviously, that was what the result was, but to get the emotion you have to turn it on inside first and then it translates to the ice."
Dickinson netted his first career hat trick to lift the Blackhawks' attack. Connor Bedard, the top pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, led Chicago with six shots but finished at minus-2.
Fellow forward Corey Perry was a healthy scratch for the second game in a row, but coach Luke Richardson didn't provide insight into the status of the former Hart Trophy recipient.
Richardson was eager to discuss the play of goaltender Arvid Soderblom, who stopped 34 shots against the Maple Leafs after shining in relief during Wednesday's 7-3 loss at Columbus.
"He's played well for us, I've mentioned a few times," Richardson said. "Just not enough goal support for his play this year at the right times, and (Friday) we got it for him, which is great."
St. Louis struggled in net and most everywhere else during Friday's 8-3 home loss to the Nashville Predators.
The Blues entered the matinee with two straight wins but were unable to hold off their Central Division counterparts, who beat goaltender Joel Hofer for four goals on 15 shots before scoring four times off Jordan Binnington in 20 shots.
Nashville effectively seized control with a pair of goals 28 seconds apart early in the first period.
"(Lack of) execution for sure," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "I liked our start the first five, six minutes. They get a goal, (then) I think we kind of froze. They put it in there and then we jump in our (defensemen), trying to poke a puck at the offensive line, give up an odd-man rush and they score again. I think we unraveled or whatever after that. But puck play and puck battles for me were not very good today."
Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich both had a goal and assist for St. Louis, which now returns to the road amid a stretch of playing 10 of 13 games away from Enterprise Center.
Jake Neighbours also scored for the Blues, who will aim to regroup and relocate their discipline after an uneven effort against the Predators.
"They had some energy there. They had legs. They were on top of us everywhere we went," Blues defenseman Justin Faulk said. "We couldn't solve it."
