National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
St. Louis 3, Tampa Bay 1
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 17, 2012
Where: Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa, Florida
Referees: Gord Dwyer, Brad Meier
Linesmen: Matt MacPherson, Tony Sericolo
Attendance: 18777


BLUES 3, LIGHTNING 1: Jaden Schwartz scored in his NHL debut and T.J. Oshie recorded two assists as visiting St. Louis blanked Tampa Bay to clinch a playoff berth and reach 100 points for the first time since 2000-01.

Schwartz, who signed to a three-year contract Monday, converted on the power play in the first period. Patrik Berglund and David Perron also netted goals for the Western Conference-leading Blues (46-19-8).

Jaroslav Halak made 22 saves to improve to 9-0-1 in his last 10 decisions.

Defenseman Brendan Mikkelson broke up Halak’s bid for a shutout with 4:11 remaining, scoring his first NHL goal in his 116th game. Halak, who was playing his 200th NHL contest, stopped all six shots he faced in the first period and his team handed him a 2-0 lead.

Berglund finished a 2-on-1 with defenseman Alex Pietrangelo for a shorthanded goal with five minutes remaining in the session. Schwartz then popped home a rebound near the top of the crease with 36 seconds left.

Oshie’s pass squirted past Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman and Perron beat veteran goalie Dwayne Roloson at 2:47 of the second period.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Schwartz had 15 goals and 26 assists in 30 games as a freshman for Colorado College. He is the 13th player to score in his Blues debut. ... St. Louis swept two games against Tampa Bay this season. ... Tampa Bay fell to 1-4-1 in its last six contests. ... St. Louis killed off all three shorthanded situations and has yielded just one power-play tally in 17 games. ... Blues defenseman Roman Polak played his 300th NHL game.

Top Game Performances
 
St. Louis   Tampa Bay
T.J Oshie 2 Points Brendan Mikkelson 1
Patrik Berglund 1 Goals Brendan Mikkelson 1
T.J Oshie 2 Assists Adam Hall 1
Jaden Schwartz 1 Power Play Goals N/A
Patrik Berglund 1 Short Handed Goals N/A
Jaroslav Halak .957 Save Percentage Dwayne Roloson .857
Jaroslav Halak 22 Saves Dwayne Roloson 18
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
St. Louis 21 3 1-2 3-3 6 33
Tampa Bay 23 1 0-3 1-2 4 19
Upcoming Games
  • Tampa Bay will play their next game at home against Buffalo. The Lightning have a W/L % of .531 after a win and .385 after a loss.
  • St. Louis will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Blues have a W/L % of .622 after a win and .643 after a loss.