Halak shuts out Oilers to lead Blues to 4-0 win
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Jaroslav Halak needed to make only 12 saves to earn his sixth shutout of the season and T.J. Oshie had a goal and an assist in the St. Louis Blues' 4-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.
It was a matchup of Western Conference foes who are out of the playoff picture, with the Blues winning for only the second time in six games (2-4) while extending the Oilers' winless streak to eight (0-6-2).
Matt D'Agostini, Chris Stewart and Adam Cracknell also scored for the Blues, who avoided falling below .500 for the first time this season.
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Nikolai Khabibulin took the loss for the Oilers, who have scored only seven goals during their skid.
Edmonton's shot total matched a season low and they didn't register a shot in the third period until there was 1:08 remaining in the game.
Oshie snapped a scoreless stalemate with 1:32 left in the second period with a wrist shot from the low right circle, beating Khabibulin high on the short side to give the Blues a 1-0 lead.
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D'Agostini extended the lead 2:12 into the third period by snapping a shot that squirted between Khabibulin's pads from the low left circle.
Stewart added his 10th goal with the Blues and 23rd overall since coming in a trade with Colorado on Feb. 19 by finishing off Oshie's feed from the slot 8:30 into the third period.
Cracknell made it 4-0 with a one-time finish of a cross-ice feed from Kevin Shattenkirk with 4:53 remaining.
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Although there were no goals scored in the first period, there were three fights that kept the crowd entertained. Cam Janssen and Jim Vandermeer kicked things off in a lengthy bout, followed by Ryan Reaves and Theo Peckham after 1 second ticked off the clock. Then, B.J. Crombeen and Jean-Francois Jacques completed the fight hat trick near the end of the opening period.
Notes: Blues C Patrik Berglund (lower-body injury) missed his first game of the season. That leaves C David Backes and D'Agostini as the only players to have appeared in all 74 games this season. C T.J. Hensick was recalled from AHL Peoria to replace Berglund. ... The Oilers have scored two or fewer goals during this eight-game winless streak. ... Oilers D Kurtis Foster (neck) missed the game after being injured Tuesday in Nashville. Foster joined D Ryan Whitney (ankle), LW Taylor Hall (ankle), RW Ales Hemsky (shoulder), C Sam Gagner (hand), C Shawn Horcoff (ankle) and RW Gilbert Brule (concussion) on the injured list. ... The Blues are playing without D Barret Jackman (finger), LW Alex Steen (ankle), RW David Perron (concussion) and C Vladimir Sobotka (foot). ... The Blues have killed 26 consecutive Oilers power plays dating to the 2008-09 season.