Tarasenko, Blues tip Blackhawks in Winter Classic
ST. LOUIS -- Vladimir Tarasenko scored a pair of goals 1:53 apart in the third period to break a 1-1 tie and lead the St. Louis Blues to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday in the Winter Classic at Busch Stadium.
Tarasenko's first goal at 12:05 of the third came as he attempted to make a backhanded centering pass and it deflected off the skate of defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson and into the net.
He then scored again at 13:58, his 18th goal of the season.
Earlier in the period Tarasenko had two great chances to put the Blues ahead but was stopped by Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford on a breakaway, and then hit the post with a shot while the Blues were on a power play.
It was the fifth outdoor game for the Blackhawks, the most of any team in the NHL, but they fell to 1-4 in those games. It was the first played by the Blues. The Blackhawks fell to 1-4-1 in their last six games.
Alexander Steen scored the final goal for the Blues into an empty net.
The Blues tied the game at 1 at 7:45 of the second period when Patrik Berglund scored, converting a perfect pass from defenseman Jay Bouwmeester in the slot, firing the puck past Crawford.
A goal by defenseman Michal Kempny just 62 seconds into the game gave the Blackhawks an early lead. Kempny's shot from the point skipped on the ice and went off goalie Jake Allen's glove into the net.
It was the second-fastet goal to begin an outdoor game in NHL history. The fastest goal came just 21 seconds into the 2008 Winter Classic, scored by the Pittsburgh Penguins' Colby Armstrong against the Buffalo Sabres.
The game drew a soldout crowd of 46,556 to Busch Stadium, where the game-time temperature was 46 degrees. Much of the game was played in a light rain.
NOTES: The Blackhawks expect C Marcus Kruger to miss about three weeks with an upper-body injury suffered in Friday night's game. He was placed on injured reserve Sunday. ... RW Marian Hossa, who has not played since Dec. 20 because of an upper-body injury, could be back for the Blackhawks' next game, at home Thursday night against Buffalo. ... LW Jaden Schwartz missed Blues practice on Sunday because of illness but was well enough to play on Monday. ... The Blues and Blackhawks have only one game remaining in their regular season series, on Feb. 26 in Chicago. ... The Blues will host the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night in their next game.