Traverse City: Hurricanes 4, Blues 1

TRAVERSE CITY - St. Louis Blues prospects didn't capitalize on some early chances and paid for it, falling 4-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday in the first game of the NHL Prospect Tournament in Traverse City.

Carolina built a three-goal lead before defenseman Jake Walman - the Blues' third round pick (No. 82 overall) in the 2014 NHL Draft - put St. Louis on the scoreboard midway through the third period.
Robert Thomas, a 2017 first-round pick who is expected to compete for a roster spot in training camp this season, recorded an assist on Walman's goal.
"A broken play in the neutral zone, just good instincts by both players," Blues Head Coach Mike Yeo told stlouisblues.com of Walman's goal. "Robby, as far as the way he picks up the puck and moves his feet to create the 2-on-1, and then that's what the skating ability of a guy like Walman can do. When you get your defenseman involved in the rush and the attack, and obviously with his shot and the ability to finish... it was a great play by both guys."
Carolina had a 2-0 lead after the first 20 minutes of play on goals from Morgan Geekie and Julien Gauthier. The Blues responded in the second period by getting the better of the play, but were stymied with some big saves from Hurricanes goaltender Jeremy Helvig.
After Walman cut the 'Canes lead to 3-1, Janne Kuokkanen sealed the win for Carolina with a late goal.

"The game overall, we had a really good start. Unfortunately we were chasing and got down 2-0," Yeo said. "They capitalized on their chances early and we didn't. In the second period, we started to carry the play again but just couldn't finish. Their goalie played really well. It was just one of those games.
"You can see the skill level out there, that's for sure," Yeo added. "As the tournament goes on, you'd expect guys to get a little bit more comfortable, a little bit more used to playing with each other and even just getting back into the intensity of the battle and the speed that things are happening at. (This is) a step up from wherever they were training. There are some things we'll see that will continue to get better as the tournament goes on."
Blues prospects are back in action on Saturday and will look to rebound against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The puck drops at 2:30 p.m. Fans can follow the action live at FOXSportsGO.com or by using the FOX Sports app on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon FireTV and other mobile devices.