National Hockey League
St. Louis 2, Dallas 1
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, December 27, 2023
Where: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Referees: Justin Kea, Francois St. Laurent
Linesmen: Scott Cherrey, Michel Cormier
Attendance: 18096

Joel Hofer made 39 saves to lift the St. Louis Blues past the visiting Dallas Stars 2-1 Wednesday night.

Jake Neighbours and Marco Scandella scored, while Scott Perunovich had two assists for the Blues, who improved to 5-1 under interim coach Drew Bannister.

Jason Robertson scored, and Scott Wedgewood made 28 saves for the Stars, who saw their three-game winning streak and six-game point streak snapped.

The Stars outshot the Blues 14-8 in the first period but went 0-for-2 on their power play while falling behind 1-0.

Hofer stopped Wyatt Johnston's point-blank shot with 7:49 left in the first period to keep the game scoreless. Hofer also made two excellent saves on Jamie Benn in the period.

The Blues took a 1-0 lead with 1:52 left in the period on Neighbours' one-time blast from deep on the right wing. Perunovich set up Neighbours with a pass from the blue line, and Brandon Saad set a screen on Wedgewood.

Scandella increased the lead to 2-0 at the 10:53 mark of the second period. With the Blues sustaining offensive pressure with an extended puck cycle, Scandella stepped in to score from the high slot through Neighbours' screen.

St. Louis got a four-minute power-play later in the period, including a two-minute 5-on-3 opportunity.

But Wedgewood fended off a flurry of shots as the Stars killed off the three penalties, then Robertson cut the Dallas deficit to 2-1 with a clean break-in with 1:29 left in the period.

The Stars just missed a chance to tie the game early in the third period when Roope Hintz hit the left post with a shot off the rush.

Dallas sustained steady pressure in the period while outshooting the Blues 15-5. The Stars pulled Wedgewood for an extra attacker with 1:52 left, but they failed to tie the game during a last-minute goalmouth scramble.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Dallas   St. Louis
Jason Robertson 1 Points Scott Perunovich 2
Jason Robertson 1 Goals Jake Neighbours 1
Roope Hintz 1 Assists Scott Perunovich 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Scott Wedgewood .933 Save Percentage Joel Hofer .975
Scott Wedgewood 28 Saves Joel Hofer 39
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Dallas 40 1 0-2 4-4 8 28
St. Louis 30 2 0-4 2-2 4 34
Upcoming Games
  • St. Louis will play their next game at home against Colorado. The Blues have a W/L % of .389 after a win and .688 after a loss.
  • Dallas will play their next game at home against Chicago. The Stars have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .769 after a loss.