The St Louis thrashed Detroit 10-3 on Wednesday to continue to add misery to the Red Wings final run toward the playoffs.
Having already been eliminated from playoffs contention, the Blues took advantage of the second-placed Detroit having to use backup goaltenders as both Jimmy Howard (shoulder) and Chris Osgood (hernia) were sidelined with injuries.
St Louis goaltender Jaroslav Halak made 41 saves and watched as his offense scored a season-high 10 goals.
Photo: Reuters
“Thank god it’s over,” Red Wings coach Mike Babcock told reporters. “Obviously, we’ll have to look at ourselves and do a much better job, because this was unacceptable.”
Chris Stewart, Cam Janssen and Chris Porter all scored in the first period as St Louis (35-32-10) took a 3-2 lead, before adding five more goals in the second.
Porter, whose first-period goal was his first of the season, added a second goal late in the third after Patrik Berglund also scored.
“We just kept pushing and it started steamrolling,” Janssen said.
The Red Wings (44-23-10) have lost five of six games and have just a one-point lead over the San Jose Sharks for second place in the Western Conference.
Goaltender Joey MacDonald, who made 38 saves against the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday, allowed seven goals, while his backup Thomas McCollum gave up three on eight shots.
Mike Modano gave Detroit a 1-0 lead 5 minutes, 51 seconds into the game, while Todd Bertuzzi and Henrik Zetterberg also scored for the home team, who had not conceded 10 goals in a game since 1993.
DUCKS 4, FLAMES 2
In Calgary, Alberta, Ray Emery made 23 saves and Corey Perry scored twice as Anaheim beat Calgary, dealing a blow to the Flames’ slim playoff chances.
Emery, signed in early February after recovering from a hip injury that required surgery in April last year, improved to 6-0-0 for the surging Ducks, who have won seven of their last eight games.
Anaheim jumped from seventh to sixth place in the Western Conference standings, six points ahead of ninth-place Calgary and Dallas. Calgary remained three points behind Chicago for the final playoff spot.
Perry scored his 45th and 46th goals of the season to break a tie with Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos for the NHL lead.
Wednesday’s other results:
‧ Sabres 1, Rangers 0
‧ Hurricanes 6, Canadiens 2
‧ Devils 3, Islanders 2
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