National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
St. Louis 6, Arizona 1
When: 9:00 PM ET, Saturday, October 18, 2014
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale, Arizona
Referees: Tom Kowal, Dennis LaRue
Linesmen: Mike Cvik, Pierre Racicot
Attendance: 11100

Blues 6, Coyotes 1: Jaden Schwartz recorded his first career hat trick to highlight a four-point performance as visiting St. Louis breezed past Arizona.

Jori Lehtera recorded a power-play goal and two assists, captain David Backes added one of each and Alex Steen netted his first tally of the season while setting up another for the Blues, who came into the night having scored just six goals in their first three games. Vladimir Tarasenko collected three assists, defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk notched two and Jake Allen stopped 24 shots in his first start of the season as St. Louis was a perfect 4-for-4 with the man advantage.

Lauri Korpikoski scored the lone goal for the Coyotes, who were silenced one game after scoring seven times in a win over Edmonton. Mike Smith made 30 saves in defeat.

Backes opened the scoring late in the first period, when the puck caromed off his right skate as he fell to the ice and past Smith. Steen extended the lead at 11:42 of the middle period and Schwartz made it 3-0 just 72 seconds later, converting a slick pass from Tarasenko with Arizona defenseman Chris Summers serving a roughing penalty.

Schwartz added to the onslaught in the opening minute of the third, snapping a shot from the slot that beat Smith high to the glove side. Arizona finally hit the scoresheet during a power play near the midway point of the period, as captain Shane Doan centered a pass from behind the net that Korpikoski one-timed past Allen, but Lehtera responded with his first NHL goal just over 1 1/2 minutes later and Schwartz capped his hat trick with his second power-play goal with 2.1 seconds left.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Blues C Paul Stastny suffered an upper-body injury on his first shift of the game and did not return. The veteran is expected to miss Sunday's game at Anaheim. ... Backes' first-period tally was the first power-play goal the Coyotes had allowed all season. Arizona had killed off 10 consecutive penalties to open the campaign. ... Schwartz recorded just one multi-goal effort all of last season. ... Schwartz and Tarasenko each registered seven shots for the Blues, while Doan did the same for the Coyotes.
Top Game Performances
 
St. Louis   Arizona
Jaden Schwartz 4 Points Lauri Korpikoski 1
Jaden Schwartz 3 Goals Lauri Korpikoski 1
Vladimir Tarasenko 3 Assists Shane Doan 1
Jaden Schwartz 2 Power Play Goals Lauri Korpikoski 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jake Allen .960 Save Percentage Mike Smith .833
Jake Allen 24 Saves Mike Smith 30
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
St. Louis 36 6 4-4 3-4 15 30
Arizona 25 1 1-4 0-4 15 35
Upcoming Games
  • Arizona will play their next game on the road against Nashville. The Coyotes have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • St. Louis will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Blues have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .667 after a loss.