BLUESFresh off a successful road trip in Western Canada, the St. Louis Blues left little in doubt in Monday night's win over Arizona. In another strong offensive performance, four unanswered goals in the second period paved the way for a 5-1 victory at Enterprise Center.
Pavel Buchnevich led the way with three points, including a shorthanded goal to record his team-high fourth shorthanded point of the season. The line of Buchnevich, Robert Thomas and Vladimir Tarasenko continues to produce, totaling seven points in Monday's win.
Tarasenko's two goals brought him to 25 on the season and the team lead in that department, and Thomas's pair of assists brought his team-high mark to 44 as the two continue their hot stretch.
The Blues have now scored four or more goals in all five games of their active point streak, dialing up their offensive volume while maintaining a well-balanced, versatile attack.
Brayden Schenn's goal in the second period was his 20th of the season, bringing the Blues to an NHL-best
seven players with 20 or more goals
. He joins Tarasenko, Buchnevich, Jordan Kyrou, David Perron, Ivan Barbashev and Brandon Saad in the 20-goal club.
This offensive burst has come at a crucial time, with each win getting the Blues closer to clinching their Playoff berth and optimizing their seeding. They'll continue their homestand against Seattle on Wednesday night before a major showdown with the Minnesota Wild on Friday.
The Blues enter Wednesday's game with a record of 39-20-10, good for 88 points and third place in the Central Division. They currently sit three points behind Minnesota and six points ahead of Nashville as the Playoff race battles on.
KRAKENThe Seattle Kraken continue to set their eyes on the future as they build out the roster of the League's newest club. At the Trade Deadline in late March, they traded veterans Calle Jarnkrok and Mark Giordano - the team's first captain - for a collection of draft assets, among other moves.
Eliminated from Playoff contention on March 30, the Kraken will use the remainder of the regular season to focus on the development of their prospects and scouting for their collection of future draft picks.
Seattle heads to St. Louis after a home win over Dallas on Sunday, fighting for a 4-1 victory. Acquired from the Boston Bruins this season, forward Karson Kuhlman logged a goal and an assist to help the Kraken to a win.
Jared McCann also added a goal to the winning effort, reaching the 40-point mark for the first time in his career. His 25 goals lead the team, and he shares the lead in points with forward Yanni Gourde.
Former Blue Jaden Schwartz missed 25 games after having hand surgery, returning to play in early March but has now missed five consecutive games. Vince Dunn is expected to be with the team to make his second trip back to St. Louis this season.
Wednesday's game in St. Louis is the first of a short two-game trip for the Kraken, which will finish in Chicago on Thursday before a home-and-home set with Calgary.
Seattle comes into the matchup with a record of 22-41-6, good for 50 points and last place in the Pacific Division.
HEAD-TO-HEADThe Blues came away victorious in both previous matchups with the Kraken, winning 2-1 in St. Louis on Jan. 13 and 5-0 in Seattle on Jan. 21 as Ville Husso recorded his second shutout of the season.
Colton Parayko's goal was a key highlight of the victory in Seattle, as he became
the first defenseman to score on a penalty shot in Blues history
.
