Preview: Blues vs. Hurricanes

When: Saturday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. CT
Where: Enterprise Center in St. Louis
Watch: Bally Sports, 101 ESPN
Listen: 101 ESPN, Blues App
Tickets: Online at ticketmaster.com

QUICK HITS

BLUES The St. Louis Blues (3-2-0) are back in the win column after Thursday night’s 1-0 overtime victory against the New York Islanders.

After a scoreless 60 minutes, the game was sent into OT. Within the first two minutes of extra time, forward Jake Neighbors said goodnight as he tallied the game-winning (and only) goal. Goaltender Joel Hofer and defenseman Philip Broberg recorded the assists.

Broberg’s assist gave him points in every game this season, becoming the first Blues defenseman to start his career with a five-game point streak. Hofer recorded his second career shutout, stopping all 34 shots he faced.

After the win, Head Coach Drew Bannister praised his team’s composure and ability to pull off the win late in the game.

“I’m proud of our group,” Bannister said. “I thought we showed a lot of maturity. That’s a game where you can get frustrated and our guys just stuck with it, and they played the game the way it came to them, and they didn’t deviate from what we had to do to have success... I thought we stayed focused, we stayed on task and they got rewarded at the end.”

The Blues continue their four-game homestand Saturday. They are 1-1-0 at Enterprise Center this season.

HURRICANES The Carolina Hurricanes (2-1-0) opened a six-game road trip Friday night with a 4-1 win in Pittsburgh. It will be the Hurricanes' first set of back-to-back games this season when they visit St. Louis.

The Hurricanes lost several key players this offseason that were essential to their success last year. Forward Teuvo Teravainen (53 points in 76 games) signed with Chicago, forward Jake Guentzel (25 points in 17 games) with Tampa Bay and defenseman Brady Skjei (47 points in 80 games) with Nashville.

Carolina has made the playoffs the past six seasons, most recently falling in the Conference Semifinals last season to the New York Rangers in six games.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

BLUES Jake Neighbours scored his first goal of the season to win the game in overtime for the Blues on Thursday. The 22-year-old forward had a breakout year in 2023-24, posting 27 goals and 38 points in his first full NHL season. Neighbours is looking to become the fifth Blue to record multiple 25+ goal seasons before their 23rd birthday (Wayne Babych, Jaden Schwartz, Doug Gilmour, Perry Turnbull).

HURRICANES Jackson Blake is helping lead the way as the Hurricanes look to the future. The 21-year-old netted his first NHL goal on Tuesday in a 4-2 win vs. New Jersey, then added another in Friday's win. The son of former NHLer Jason Blake, Jackson was drafted by Carolina in the fourth round (109th overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft.

BLUE NOTES

• With a point on Saturday, Philip Broberg would match the longest point streak by a Blues defenseman to start a season at six games (Steve Duchesne, 1997-98).
• The Blues will play their first Saturday game of the 2024-25 season after posting a 12-8-2 record on Saturdays last season, including an 8-2-1 record in Saturday home games.
• Thursday's game marked Kasperi Kananen’s 100^th as a Blue.
• Brandon Saad is one shy of 500 career points.
• Starting with their game on Thursday vs. the Islanders, the Blues are in a stretch of eight of nine games against Eastern Conference teams and 13 of 15 games against the East.