Pavel Buchnevich scored two goals and Joel Hofer made 30 saves to lead the host St. Louis Blues to a 3-2 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
It was the 22nd multi-goal game of Buchnevich’s career and the first since Oct. 11, 2024. Robert Thomas had two assists and Brayden Schenn also scored for St. Louis, which moved into fifth place in the Central Division with the win.
Tyson Jost and Fedor Svechkov scored goals and Nicolas Hague had two assists for Nashville, which had a three-game winning streak snapped. Juuse Saros finished with 17 saves for the Predators.
St. Louis took a 1-0 lead at the 8:45 mark when Schenn, stationed by the right post, deflected Cam Fowler’s point shot past the glove of Saros for his 700th career point.
Nashville, which won the first two meetings between the two teams by a combined score of 12-4, tied it midway through the period when Hague’s point shot was redirected by Jost in the slot over Hofer’s left shoulder.
The Blues regained the lead with 1:46 left in the period on Buchnevich’s goal at the end of an odd-man rush. Buchnevich, skating down the right wing, attempted to make a crossing pass to Jake Neighbours but Predator defenseman Roman Josi blocked it with his glove and the puck bounced straight back to Buchnevich, who backhanded it inside the right post.
Nashville appeared to tie it, 2-2, late in the second period on a goal by Filip Forsberg, but St. Louis successfully challenged that Steven Stamkos was offside entering the zone before the score.
The Blues extended the lead to 3-1 early in the third period when Buchnevich roofed a rebound of his own shot over a sprawling Saros.
The Predators cut the lead to 3-2 at the 12:03 mark of the period on a short-handed goal by Svechkov, who fired a wrist shot from the left circle past Hofer’s glove side.
Nashville pulled Saros for an extra attacker with 2:05 remaining but Hofer turned aside five shots, including a deflection in the low slot by Luke Evangelista and another close-in wrist shot by Evangelista just before time expired.
–Field Level Media
