Sobotka scores in NHL return as Blues beat Avs
ST. LOUIS -- Vladimir Tarasenko scored his 39th goal of the season early in the third period to give the St. Louis Blues a 3-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday night in the final game of the regular season for both teams.
Tarasenko's goal came 1:19 after the Blues tied the game on a goal from Vladimir Sobotka, who was playing his first game in the NHL in nearly three years. He returned to the Blues after spending those seasons playing in the KHL in Russia.
The Blues (46-29-7) finished the regular season on a 15-2-2 run and they will now get ready for a first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Wild.
The loss ended a woeful season for the Avalanche, who had the worst record in the NHL at 22-56-4. They won only one of their final 24 road games since Dec. 23, going 1-21-2 over that stretch.
The Blues scored the first goal of the game with 23 seconds left in the first period. Zach Sanford, acquired from Washington in the February trade that sent Kevin Shattenkirk to the Capitals, scored his second goal in 13 games with the Blues off a pass from Dmitrij Jaskin.
The Avalanche, held to just three shots on goal in the first period, took the lead with a goal from Francois Beauchemin and a goal from Mikko Rantanen as they fired 16 shots on goal against Jake Allen in the second period.
Beauchemin's goal came 4:03 into the period. Rantanen then put the Avalanche ahead with an unassisted goal, at 15:02.
The Blues had a brief scare midway through the second period when Jaden Schwartz limped off the ice after colliding with Colorado's J.T. Compher but Schwartz was able to return to the ice just a few minutes later.
NOTES: LW Vladimir Sobotka last played for the Blues on April 27, 2014, the final game of a playoff series against Chicago. He rejoined the team on Friday after his contract in the KHL expired. ... The Blues rested D Alex Pietrangelo, C Kyle Brodziak and LW Scottie Upshall. ... The only Blues to play in all 82 games this season were C Patrik Berglund, RW David Perron and RW Vladimir Tarasenko. ... The only player to appear in all 82 games for the Avalanche was C Nathan MacKinnon. ... Colorado finished the season with a 9-30-2 road record. Their only road win since Dec. 23 came on Feb. 17 at Carolina.