ST. LOUIS — The Detroit Red Wings had to go all the way to the fourth round of a shootout to win.
They outplayed the St. Louis Blues in the third period Tuesday at Enterprise Center, generating chances and getting in lanes to help ease pressure on their goaltender, but it wasn’t until Lucas Raymond scored in the shootout that the Wings collected a 3-2 victory, only their third in the last 13 games.
Alex Chiasson and Filip Zadina scored equalizers during a first period used by the Blues to welcome back former teammates now playing for the Wings. It was 2-2 going into the third period, but despite outshooting the Blues, 13-8, the Wings were stymied by Joel Hofer. Pius Suter, David Perron and Dylan Larkin were denied in the shootout.
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Defenseman Simon Edvinsson, who got banged up in Monday’s game, took warmups but ultimately wasn’t deemed available. Gustav Lindstrom ended up drawing in after missing a few games with an undisclosed injury, and had a hand in one of the first-period goals.
Setting a tone
Robert Bortuzzo slipped a backhand shot behind Magnus Hellberg just past the two-minute mark, but the Wings were able to get an equalizer during a power play. Chiasson, now nine games into a stint that began after the March 3 trade deadline, netted his fourth power play goal. It drew applause from fans, but that was because of who got the first assist: Perron, one of three former Blues now wearing red and white. Hellberg looked unprepared when Marco Scandella fired a shot from the blue line that made it 2-1 Blues midway through the period. It was Zadina who got that one back, taking a pass from Dominik Kubalik and firing a nice little shot from the left circle past Hofer.
Queue the welcomes
Former Blues Jake Walman and Ville Husso received a nice little welcome back during a time out, with Husso smiling and waving from the bench; he was the backup this night, but is earmarked to start Thursday when the teams meet again in Detroit. Perron, who has played for the Blues in three separate stints and won the Cup with them in 2019, received a nearly two-minute long tribute, cheered by fans as he got emotional on the ice. Perron’s leadership is among the reasons he appealed to the Wings, and coach Derek Lalonde said before the game that, “he drags guys into the fight. I really hope he can keep this team battling down the stretch here.”
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Sedate second
After all the emotion of the first period, the second dragged at times; 10 minutes in, each side had only registered two shots on net. The Wings were shorthanded twice. Former Wings forward Jakub Vrana, dealt at the trade deadline for a seventh-round pick, tested Hellberg with a snap shot from the left circle. Vrana had a bit of a breakaway again late in the period, and was denied on his fourth attempt to score on Hellberg. The Wings finished with eight shots in the period, thanks to a late flurry that included Raymond’s backhand attempt from just outside the crease.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.