Hofer Records 28 Saves as Blues Shut Out Sabres
Joel Hofer stopped 28 shots to lead the St. Louis Blues to a 3-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center on Thursday. This marked Hofer’s third career shutout. He started the game after entering in relief of Jordan Binnington in a previous 6-1 loss to the Washington Capitals, where he saved 15 of 17 shots.
“Especially after last night, it tells a lot about our group, the character we have,” Hofer said. “After last night it was tough but bounced back and got a good win.”
Mathieu Joseph contributed a goal and two assists, while Justin Faulk added a goal and an assist for the Blues, who improved to 5-8-2 and have won two of their last three games.
Lineup Changes and Coach's Comments
St. Louis scratched forward Jordan Kyrou, who was tied for second on the team with eight points (four goals, four assists) in 14 games.
“There were several people we weren’t happy with the effort last night,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. “It didn’t matter the role, there were a lot of guys that didn’t play up to their role or responsibilities on the team. And the players we ended up going with we thought gave us the best opportunity to win tonight.”
Sabres’ Point Streak Ends
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 14 saves for the Sabres, who dropped to 5-5-4. Their seven-game point streak (3-0-4) came to an end with this shutout loss.
Joel Hofer’s strong goaltending and key offensive contributions helped the Blues snap the Sabres’ seven-game point streak with a confident 3-0 win.