Fowler, Blues defeat Blackhawks in NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field

CHICAGO -- Hey hey and holy cow, it was all St. Louis Blues on a cold, memorable New Year’s Eve at Wrigley Field.

“I mean, during the national anthem and right before it started, the ‘Let’s go Blues, Let’s go Hawks’ back and forth, that was unbelievable,” St. Louis coach Jim Montgomery said. “I felt like a little kid just being a part of a special event.”

Cam Fowler scored twice in his 1,000th NHL game, Justin Faulk had a goal and two assists, and the Blues defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 6-2 in the Discover NHL Winter Classic at the old North Side neighborhood ballpark on Tuesday.

Jordan Binnington made 28 saves for the Blues (18-17-4), who had 12 players with at least a point. They improved to 3-0-0 in Winter Classic games, including 2-0-0 against the Blackhawks, having defeated them 4-1 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis in 2017.

“We were talking after the game in the room there and just from the walkout, national anthem, the music going, the flyover and the fireworks, guys were getting emotional,” Binnington said. “You’re thinking about everything that’s led you to this moment. You have your family with you. The NHL did an incredible job with this production and we’re all just very grateful. It was a really great event. It was a great atmosphere and hearing our St. Louis fans at the end of the game counting how many goals we had, it was a lot of fun.”

Taylor Hall and Tyler Bertuzzi scored, but the Blackhawks (12-24-2) gave up two power-play goals in the first 8:10 of the game and Petr Mrazek allowed six goals on 28 shots. Chicago lost its fifth straight and fell to 0-5-0 in Winter Classic games, including 0-2-0 at Wrigley Field.

“Chicago knows how to celebrate sports and our fans did not disappoint today, and I think that’s what makes it so [darn] difficult right now,” Chicago captain Nick Foligno said. “It’s just embarrassing to lose 6-2 in an environment like that at home. Our fans deserve better. It’s in this room to figure it out because that’s three games in a row where it’s not good enough. I don’t know. I really wish I had an answer for you. On this stage, with the excitement we had before the game, I thought this was going to be a turning point for our club and obviously it wasn’t.”

The temperature for puck drop at 4:26 p.m. local time was 38 degrees. The attendance was 40,933, the NHL’s second sellout at Wrigley, which also hosted the 2009 Winter Classic between the Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings. Detroit defeated Chicago 6-4 in front of 40,818.

The Smashing Pumpkins got the crowd started by playing their hit “Tonight, Tonight” as the players emerged out of their respective dugouts and made the walk to the ice.

Blackhawks anthem singer Jim Cornelison delivered a stirring rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” with the home fans cheering along, getting louder and louder as Cornelison pointed to the flag, just as they do at United Center.

After the fireworks and flyover, the game started, and in 100 seconds the Blues were on the board.

Fowler, the first player to skate outdoors in his 1,000th game, gave St. Louis a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 1:40 of the first period. He cut down from the point, received a Pavel Buchnevich pass from the goal line and scored from between the hash marks.

Jordan Kyrou made it 2-0 at 8:10, scoring a power-play goal from below the left face-off circle off a pass from Jake Neighbours, who was below the right circle.

Kyrou also had an NHL outdoor-game record four points (two goals, two assists) in the Blues’ 6-4 win against the Minnesota Wild in the 2022 Winter Classic at Target Field in Minneapolis.

“Our first 10 minutes was excellent,” Montgomery said.

The Blackhawks were stunned.

“I’m shocked at how we played,” Hall said. “Just really disappointing. Our fans, they’ve been through a lot this year and they came to support us so much today, you really felt the energy before the game. For us to lay an egg like that, I’m really sad for the people that support us and for us in here, it’s got to be a huge wake-up call, just how hard we have to play.”

To credit the Blackhawks, they did wake up after giving up the two power-play goals. They cut it to 2-1 on Hall’s power-play goal at 15:26. They kept pushing. Chicago had 11 shot attempts, six on goal, to St. Louis’ zero attempts after Hall’s goal through the end of the period.

But Jason Dickinson missed the net on a short-handed breakaway 1:29 into the second period, and the Blackhawks sagged from there as the Blues began to soar.

Faulk made it 3-1 at 7:15 with a one-timer from inside the blue line that went straight in through traffic.

Binnington stopped Hall on a breakaway with a right-pad save at 12:48, and 46 seconds later Dylan Holloway made it 4-1. Faulk’s shot from above the right circle hit off the left post and went to Holloway, who settled the puck and scored before Mrazek could turn and react.

Fowler extended it to 5-1 at 17:51 with a shot from inside the left point that got through screens and past Mrazek, who didn’t appear to see it. He became the first defenseman to score two goals in an NHL outdoor game.

“It’s a special day,” Blackhawks center Connor Bedard said. “How many teams are playing outdoors this year? Four. So, we are fortunate to be one of those picked and we kind of get dog-walked there. It’s frustrating for sure.”

Bertuzzi cut it to 5-2 on the power play at 11:15 of the third period. Bedard had the secondary assist.

Alexandre Texier scored at 16:18 off the rebound of Faulk’s shot for the 6-2 final.

“Couldn’t ask for anything more from this experience,” Fowler said. “It was an awesome night for all of us but more special because we got a win. That kind of seals everything for us.”

NOTES: Fowler became the first Blues player to score in his 1,000th game. He is the second defenseman to score two goals in his 1,000th game (Chris Phillips, Ottawa Senators, Feb. 9, 2012, against the Nashville Predators). … The Blues joined the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals as the only teams to win their first three outdoor games. … Faulk’s goal, his second of the season, was his first in 35 games; he last scored Oct. 10 at the San Jose Sharks. … Bedard extended his point streak to five games (three goals, four assists). … Blackhawks forward Craig Smith returned after missing eight straight games and nine of the previous 10 because of a back injury. He had three shots on goal and was minus-1 in 9:36 of ice time.