Blues 4, Jets 2
WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- Right winger Vladimir Tarasenko scored a pair of goals to power the St. Louis Blues to a 4-2 victory over the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre on Sunday afternoon.
Tarasenko opened the scoring early in the second period with his fourth goal of the season and then ripped his fifth midway through the final frame to snap a 2-2 tie as the Blues upped their record to 5-1-0.
Veteran center Scottie Upshall added his second goal of the year and defenseman Carl Gunnarsson netted his first for St. Louis, in the midst of a six-game road trip, the club's longest of the season.
The Jets, now 4-2-0, got goals from left winger Mathieu Perreault, with his first of the year, and right winger Drew Stafford, with his second.
St. Louis goalie Brian Elliott made 27 saves for his fourth win of the young season, while Ondrej Pavelec stopped 37 shots in the Winnipeg net. The Blues outshot the hosts 18-6 in the third.
Tarasenko scored the winner at 9:50 of the third period on a delayed penalty when his hard wrist shot from near the right faceoff dot eluded Pavelec.
Gunnarsson added some insurance with a power play goal with just over a minute left in the game.
Tarasenko opened the scoring at 3:27 of the middle frame when he took a pass from right winger Dmitrij Jaskin and released a hard wrist shot that beat Pavelec high to the glove side.
On the next shift, Upshall caught Winnipeg blueliner Adam Pardy with a high stick and went to the penalty box. Just 17 seconds into the man advantage, Jets right winger Blake Wheeler found Perreault wide open in front with a perfect pass and he notched the power-play marker at 4:31.
The visitors regained the one-goal lead when Jaskin, stationed behind the net, flipped the puck to Upshall standing alone just above the crease, and he shoveled it in at 9:42.
But the Jets struck back with their second power-play goal of the period at 12:27 when rookie left winger Nikolaj Ehlers snapped a rocket from the point that was tipped in by Stafford.
NOTES: Blues C Paul Stastny didn't play Sunday and won't play Tuesday in Montreal after suffering a lower-body injury when he went down to block a shot Friday in Vancouver against the Canucks. Stastny had five points in his first five games of the season. ... St. Louis D Kevin Shattenkirk (lower body) was also scratched, while the Jets sat D Paul Postma, D Ben Chiarot and C Nic Petan.