The St Louis Blues went to Chicago Friday night and handed the Blackhawks a 4-1 defeat. For the Blackhawks, the loss meant nothing but the win meant the Blues moved into the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.
“We knew we needed sort of a defense-first mentality,” Blues head coach Mike Yeo said. “They’re so dangerous, some of the players they have out there. Obviously [Patrick] Kane, [Patrick] Sharp, those guys, I thought they were a threat, but we were on guard against it all night and did a pretty good job managing the puck.”
The Blues’ win was one game after being outplayed by the Hawks in St Louis.
Patrik Berglund put the offense on his back and netted a hat trick for the Blues/
“I think we all played a really good game today, so it’s good for everybody’s confidence,” Berglund said. “We know what we have to do tomorrow. We need to rest up and be ready.”
Carter Hutton made 19 saves to pick up the win.
Jaden Schwartz also scored for St Louis.
It all comes down to Saturday’s game with the Colorado Avalanche in Denver; the Avs trail the Blues by a single point.
“It clears the picture, but there’s work to be done. Now we know what we need for tomorrow. It’s going to be an intense hockey game,” Yeo said.
Erik Gustafsson scored the lone goal for Chicago.
[WATCH: All Blues vs. Blackhawks highlights]
J-F Berube made 31 saves in taking the loss.
Chicago ended the season at home with an 18-18-5 record.
After the game, Patrick Sharp announced this is “probably” his last season.
“It was a tough game out there, tough to concentrate with what was going on inside my head,” Sharp said. “But, thankful that I was able to do that, and the Hawks put that video on for me in the third, which was really special, and the guys standing out on the ice and making me do a lap was something I’ll always remember. It was a special night.”
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