The three-game sweep of the NHL starts in St Louis where the Blues were hosting the San Jose Sharks.
The Sharks are feeling heat from the Anaheim Ducks and they needed a win to keep pace Thursday night.
The Sharks got goals from Joonas Donskoi and Joe Thornton in the second period to lead them to a 3-1 win over the Blues.
Martin Jones made 26 saves for the win.
“It’s tough to win let alone on the road so it’s a good sign,” Jones said. “I think the last month, we’ve been playing very well, even at home, so it’s good to see things coming together here.
“Anytime you get goal support, that helps. You look at the stats, every single team in the League is the same. [You’re] just a better team when you have the lead and you score first. Those were important goals for sure.”
Jay Bouwmeester was the lone Blues goal scorer. The Blues’ offense has gone cold in the last five games with only five goals scored.
“It’s human nature when it’s not happening for you,” Bouwmeester said. “You get a little antsy, but when we are playing well, we are creating chances. It’s just a matter of putting them in. We’ve got to find a way.”
The Blues are 2-2-1 in their five.
“Today, the first period was the best period we played in a long time,” Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said after his team had 13 shots. “It was a great period, and then we got away from it in the second and gave them the momentum. We funneled pucks at the net, we put shots at [Jones’] feet, we had lots of scoring chances close at the net, and then we got frustrated and started making plays rather than continuing with that program and so we ended up with lot of zone time but mostly playing sideways rather than that attack mode that we did in the first period.”
Matt Nieto also scored for the Sharks.
In Toronto, Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock coached his 1,000th NHL game and won, 3-2, over the New Jersey Devils in a shootout.
“Don’t get me wrong; I’m proud that it’s my 1,000th game, and I am proud for Dion, [Lupul] and [Kadri],” he said. “But to me, you just want to win the game. It’s the day, it’s the game you are playing and you want to win.”
It was a night of milestones for the Leafs with Dion Phaneuf’s 800th game; Joffrey Lupul’s 700th and Nazem Kadri’s 300th.
The Leafs’ Peter Holland scored the game-tying goal with six seconds left in regulation to force extra time.
PA Parenteau won the game with a slick shot in the skills competition to send the Devils home with the loss.
“That’s my only move,” Parenteau said. “It is the only move I use. I’m about 50 percent in my career, with it so I keep going with it and I keep surprising goalies so I don’t see why I’d change it.”
James Reimer got the win, stopping all three shooters in the skills competition.
“Whenever it’s a milestone game it is always nice when you end it on a winning note,” Reimer said.
In Vancouver, The Columbus Blue Jackets got a strong game from Joonas Korpisalo who made 37 saves to lead the Jackets to a 2-1 win in the shootout over the Canucks.
“It’s easy to say now because he didn’t let one in, but it just looked like he wasn’t going to let one in,” Columbus coach John Tortorella said. “That’s how it felt on the bench. Just a great experience for him as far as what he is doing for the club and for him as far as his confidence.”
Alexander Wennberg won it for Columbus, beating Ryan Miller in the shootout.
“Coming in there I saw he was waiting for me to deke or something,” Wennberg said. “I just tried to shot it quick and it worked this time. I felt like there was an open spot.”
Scott Hartnell scored for Columbus in the third period to tie the game at one all.
It was a third straight loss for the Canucks who are fading in the Pacific.
“It’s three games in a row where we felt we could get two points in every single one and instead we’re sitting with one point,” said Canucks forward Jannik Hansen, who hit the crossbar from in tight on a breakaway 17 seconds into overtime. “It’s another wasted opportunity to either gain some ground or keep up in the [playoff] race.”
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