Stauber wins debut in goal, helps Blackhawks beat Blues 5-3

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Rookie Jaxson Stauber made 29 saves in his NHL debut and Jason Dickinson had one goal and two assists as the Chicago Blackhawks rallied to a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night.

“I’ve dreamed about it for so long I didn’t know what it would feel like,” said Stauber, whose parents attended the game. “But it felt really good. I can’t put it into words. It was so great and exciting.”

Stauber, 23, arrived in Chicago Thursday for an emergency recall. Stauber signed from Providence College last year after a distinguished career. He has played 12 games for the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League this season, winning 6-4 with an average of 3.06 conceding and an .896 save. He is the son of former NHL goaltender Robb Stauber, who played five seasons in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings and Buffalo Sabers.

“It thought it was great. An excellent start,” said Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson. “He was calm and comfortable. He played the puck very well all night to the end. A real heads-up game from him. He deserved the win.”

The Blackhawks have won six of their last seven games. The loss ended the Blues’ four-game winning streak against Chicago. St. Louis had beaten the Blackhawks at home six straight times since Nov. 14, 2018.

Sam Lafferty, Reese Johnson, Andreas Athanasiou and Max Domi also scored for Chicago, which had just 18 shots on target.

“Winning is fun. That’s what we play for,” said Domi. “It wasn’t nice tonight, but we accept it.”

Jordan Kyrou, Ivan Barbashev and Nick Leddy scored for St. Louis.

Chicago scored on their first two shots on goal. Dickinson met a rapidly developing 2-on-1 for a 1-0 lead at 10-27 of the first period. The Blackhawks made it 2-0 at 1:20 p.m. with a shorthanded goal from Lafferty after being fed by Dickinson for a breakaway and hitting Jordan Binnington through the five-hole. Lafferty used his speed to assist Dickinson’s goal.

“Obviously it’s disappointing,” Blues coach Craig Berube said. “I made two mistakes that shouldn’t have happened and they’re both in the net and it’s 2-0. I have no answer to that. I’m sorry. So we’re fighting uphill for the rest of the game and it obviously wasn’t good enough.”

In the second half, each team scored two goals. Chicago went 3-0 up in the second half after 2 minutes when Johnson got behind Calle Rosen and tapped in the puck after getting a pass from Colin Blackwell. St. Louis came back with a power play goal less than a minute later when Kyrou scored with a wrist shot at 2:54. Athanasiou gave Chicago a 4-1 lead by 3:59.

That was it for Binnington, who allowed four goals on seven shots. Substitute Thomas Greiss came into play.

“Really difficult start for us, you know,” said Barbashev. “Four goals to give up. I don’t think it was on Binnington to be honest. We gave them very easy goals.”

St. Louis reduced the lead to 4-2 when Barbashev scored with a backhander to make it 13-12.

Each team scored a goal in the final period. Stauber stayed calm after St. Louis closed the gap.

“I just took a few deep breaths and got some water and prepared for the next time,” said Stauber, who kept the puck as a souvenir from the game.

EICHIPS

Blues LW Logan Brown was activated from injured reserve but he was a healthy scratch for Saturday’s game. …Sent C. Nikita Alexandrov to the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, ending a stint in the NHL where he had seven games with two goals and one assist. … RW Vladimir Tarasenko (hand), D. Torey Krug (lower body), D. Robert Bortuzzo (lower body), D. Marco Scandella (hip) all participated in Saturday morning’s optional skate for the Blues. Nobody played the game.

Blackhawks: host the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday night.

Blues: Host Buffalo on Tuesday night.

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Warren Mayes, The Associated Press