In San Jose, Brandon Saad struck for two goals for the St Louis Blues on Thursday night in a 5-3 win over the Sharks.
James Neal had a single marker for the Blues.
St Louis improved to 7-1-1.
“Going into the third period with a lead, you want to lock it down as much as you can,” Neal said. “It’s a good team win, really liked the way the guys battled.”
Joel Hofer made 23 saves for the Blues in NHL debut.
“There [were] obviously a lot of emotions going through my head,” Hofer said. “It’s obviously super special. You dream of it your whole life, and to get the win, in the first game, too, it’s the cherry on top.”
Brent Burns broke the ice with a goal in the first period for a 1-0 lead to San Jose.
Saad tied the game, 1-1, with a shorthanded goal midway through the first.
Logan Couture restored the lead with his own shorthanded strike for a 2-1 lead.
“We could have jumped out to a bigger lead off the start,” Couture said. “If we get two or three off the hop, I think we put ourselves in a better spot.”
The Blues’ Pavel Buchnevich tied the game, again, at 2-2.
The Sharks took their final lead, 3-2, when Nick Merkley.
“We had some opportunities and we let a couple of opportunities slip away,” Sharks coach John MacLean said. “It was just one of those games where we can’t forget St. Louis is a pretty good hockey club, and when they got the lead they shut it down good.”
Robert Thomas scored an empty-net goal with one minute left on the clock.
Adin Hill made 23 saves in the San Jose loss.
“I feel like we got away from our identity a bit,” Hill said. “It was a little too run-and-gun for what we like tonight and that was the result.”
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