ST.
LOUIS — The St. Louis Blues remain winless in the preseason after
falling in their home opener, 4-2 against the Chicago Blackhawks at
Enterprise Center on Saturday.
The
Blues (0-2-1) were cruising along, leading 2-0 after two periods
before the Blackhawks (1-1-0), playing mostly a younger lineup with
few NHL-experienced players, rallied to score four times in the third
period, including three on backup goalie Will Cranley.
The
Blues agreed to terms with defenseman Cam Fowler, who played 25:25 on
Saturday and had an assist, to a three-year contract extension that
will keep him in St. Louis through the 2028-29 season, but a number
of veterans played their first game on Saturday.
Dalibor Dvorsky and Brayden Schenn scored the goals for St. Louis, whose new home uniforms are kick-a**.
Here
are some observations of players’ performances (at least through
two periods):
*
Dalibor Dvorsky – I thought the 2023 first-round pick (No. 10
overall) may have been the best all-around Blues player of the night.
Not
only did Dvorsky score a wicked, nasty goal using Blackhawks
defenseman Louis Crevier as a screen and catching perhaps a surprised
Spencer Knight off guard, but Dvorsky was also responsible
defensively and off the puck. It’s something that he knows he has
to work on to become a more complete player.
“Every
single player is great on this level,” Dvorsky said. “I’ve just
got to be ready all the time. I just have to learn to play the system
pretty good. I’m just trying to do my best every single game.”
Associate
coach Steve Ott liked what he saw.
“Talking
about those first two periods, I thought his game was a lot
stronger,” Ott said. “He’s continuing to grow through camp.
He’s an exciting player. He had a lot of good puck possession, some
strong plays and his growth continues to excel as this camp’s gone
on.”
As
far as his goal?
“First,
‘Peki’ (Juraj Pekarcik) gave me a great pass,” Dvorsky said,
“which it was a hard pass. Happy it went through and then I had a
one-on-one there with the ‘D’ and I just tried to shoot it
between his legs, so the goalie can’t see the puck and I’m happy
it went in.”
*
Jordan Binnington – Let’s just cut to the chase how: No. 50 is
ready for the season to begin.
He
stopped all 16 shots he faced through two periods, some of them in
tight.
It’s
the second straight solid start for Binnington, who has allowed just
one goal on 31 shots in four periods spanning two games of action.
We
don’t need to get into any sort of lengthy soliloquy here; he’s
ready.
*
Juraj Pekarcik – It was the 2023 third-round pick’s first
preseason game after missing a week of camp with a shoulder ailment.
Pekarcik
played on a line with Dvorsky and 2025 first-round pick Justin
Carbonneau and finished with 13:10 of ice time with three hits and
two giveaways, one in which he will be shown the video of a dangerous
no-look backhand flip that was turned over in the defensive zone.
He
did have a nifty move to the net using a toe-drag and turnaround pass
into the slot that was just off the mark and needed a stick on it.
Not a bad performance for a skater likely bound for Springfield of
the American Hockey League.
*
Logan Mailloux – I didn’t have Mailloux on my bingo card for a
fight, but the 22-year-old dropped the gloves with Colton Dach after
delivering a clean check to Sam Lafferty in the defensive zone.
Another
player that we know can perform offensively, Mailloux continues to
hone in on his defensive game and had some nice breakups killing
plays. He used his size and stick to his advantage once again,
playing 18:59 with five shot attempts and three hits.
*
Will Cranley – It was not a good night for Binnington’s backup on
Saturday.
He
came into the third period holding a 2-0 lead, a lead that lasted
halfway through the final stanza before the brakes came off.
Cranley
allowed three goals on nine shots, including the first and second
goals 27 seconds apart, the second which tied the game 2-2 that
Cranley misplayed a puck behind the net.
It’s
safe to say he will be among the cuts on Sunday.
*
Justin Carbonneau – The 2025 first-round pick wasn’t as
noticeable as he was in the first three preseason games when he
scored a goal and assisted on another.
He
played 13:38 in the game and had a shot on goal and two shot attempts
but also committed two penalties, one a holding minor 200 feet from
his net and jumped onto the ice prematurely that resulted in a too
many men on the ice.
Carbonneau
was saying goodbye to what will one day be his future Blues teammates
one day and will head to the QMJHL on Sunday. This was a great
experience for the 18-year-old but it’s evident another year in
junior may be best for his long-term growth.
* Adam Jiricek – I didn’t think the 2024 first-round pick had as strong of a game as he did against the Columbus Blue Jackets last week.
Jiricek, who played 17:13, had just one shot attempt in the game after he was focused on funneling and shooting pucks from the blue line in his preseason debut, had a few turnovers in the D-zone that could have resulted in dangerous situations.
It just didn’t seem like a clean game for him.
*
Hear what Blues players and Ott had to say postgame, including Fowler on his three-year contract extension:
(UPDATED): St. Louis Blues, Cam Fowler Agree To Terms On Three-Year Extension
ST.
LOUIS – Cam
Fowler is staying put.
Toropchenko, Blues Feel There’s More Offense To Big Russian’s game
MARYLAND
HEIGHTS, Mo. — Alexey Toropchenko
returned to St. Louis this summer feeling like a new man.
