From: jca2@cec1.wustl.edu (Joseph Charles Achkar)
Subject: Blues shutout by Jets 1-0
Keywords: Blues, Jets, Hull, Selanne, Shanahan 
Organization: Washington University, St. Louis MO
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 16:43:52 GMT


From the St. Louis Post-Disptach, written by Jeff Gordon:
---------------------------------------------------------

    Thud!

    That was the sound of the Blues hitting the ice like a safe after
succumbing to the struggling Winnipeg Jets 1-0 at The Arena on Saturday night.

    Goaltender Bob Essensa shut them out, handling 32 shots in a game largely
controlled by Winnipeg at even strength.  Blues goaltender Curtis Joseph was
often spectacular -- stopping 32 shots, including a penalty shot by Phil
Housley -- but he couldn't steal his team a point.

    Tomas Steen's third-period goal made the difference as Winnipeg won for the
first time at The Arena since Dec. 14, 1982.

    The Blues had eight power plays to generate some offense but couldn't get
it together against the Jets, who came into the game just 10-17-3 overall and
4-12-1 on the road.

    The loss was crushing for the Blues, who entered the game desperate for
points. They had lost five of their last seven games, sinking back into the
Norris Division cellar and falling six games under .500.

    With the Blues back to full strength on defense, Rick Zombo and Lee Norwood
were the odd men out. Murray Baron played for the first time in seven games and
Curt Giles was back in the lineup for the second successive game.

    Enforcer Kelly Chase returned to the lineup in place of Vitali Prokhorov,
who aggravated his chronic shoulder injury Thursday night.

    The Jets dominated a scoreless first period, but Joseph kept the Blues
alive. He stopped Bryan Erickson twice on point-blank shots yielded by a
horrendous Blues defense.

    Housley and Teemu Selanne put dangerous shots through a screen on goal and
Keith Tkachuk was dangerous whacking at rebounds around the net.

    The best early Blues chances came on a Brendan Shanahan power-play
deflection and point-blank shot by Stephane Quintal set up by a Brett Hull pass.

    The Jets lost veteran center Troy Murray early in the first period; he
suffered a foot injury when he was hit by a shot. Jets defenseman Teppo
Numminen was shaken up when Rich Sutter crashed over the top of him against 
the boards, but he returned to the game after being helped from the ice.

    The Blues got pinned in their zone on a Winnipeg power play early in second
period and Joseph had to remain sharp. The best chance came when Alexei Zhamnov
walked in one-on-one on Joseph at the right post. Zhamnov made a couple moves,
but Joseph came out, juked with him and ultimately kicked out a save.

    After 29 minutes, the Blues had put just eight shots on goal. But the Blues
had a couple of good chances on ensuing power plays.

    On one, Shanahan walked in front but was stopped by Essensa. On another, a
bouncing dump-in gave Igor Korolev a scoring chance on the edge of the crease .
. . but he couldn't corral the bouncing puck.

    Shanahan walked in again, but  Essensa was playing him low and turned him
away.

    Then, near the end of the second period, Blues veterans Ron Sutter and
Garth Butcher took back-to-back penalties to give Winnipeg a power play for
nearly three minutes and five-on-three  advantage for 64 seconds.

    Ron Wilson blocked a Housley shot to get the Blues out of the second
period, but the Jets opened the third period with 43 more seconds of
five-on-three play.

    The Blues killed that off but got forechecked against the end boards
shortly thereafter. Good work by John Druce along the boards got the puck to
Erickson, who centered it to Steen, who scored from the left circle.

    Given a chance to tie the game shortly thereafter on the power play, the
Blues took some good rips at Essensa, but he held the fort -- gloving a Jeff
Brown blast from the left point, closing his pads on a Hull missile from the
slot and getting a shoulder on a bad-angle Ron Sutter shot.

    After Joseph robbed Evgeny Davydov with two point-blank saves, Shanahan led
a Blues rush. He managed to cut in from left wing and muscle the puck on net,
but the Blues couldn't punch it in as it bounced crazily in the crease area.

    Midway through the period, the Blues got another power-play opportunity to
even the game when Jets winger Darrin Shannon boarded Rich Sutter.

    The Blues were dangerous, and Hull wound up uncovered on left wing, but he
refused to shoot. Instead, he faked a  shot and rolled the puck harmlessly to
the end boards left of the goal. The Jets were able to ice the puck.

    With 7:09 left in the game,  Zhamnov got yanked down on a breakaway and was
awarded a penalty shot. Because he was injured on the play, Housley was chosen
to shoot for him.

    Joseph jumped out of the net to face him, then backed up and hung with
Housley when he tried to shoot between his pads. Joseph is 3-0 on penalty shots
in his career.

    The Blues got still another power play, with 3:41 left in the game, but
couldn't convert. Hull tipped a shot just wide and Essensa got a piece of a
Brown rocket. Then an exhausted Brown took a penalty in the neutral zone to
negate the man-advantage and finish off the Blues.

    With 12.4 seconds left, Shannon thought he had buried the clincher, but the
goal was erased by the replay official.


Box score:
----------
JETS 1, BLUES 0

WINNIPEG      0      0      1  --  1
BLUES         0      0      0  --  0

FIRST PERIOD

    No scoring

    Penalties -- Rich Sutter (B), holding stick, 4:37; Housley (W),
high-sticking, 6:51; Giles (B), kneeing, 9:19; Kennedy (W), major (fighting),
13:47; Chase (B), major (fighting), 13:47.

SECOND PERIOD

    No scoring

    Penalties -- Erickson (W), tripping, 3:29; Blues bench, served by Chase
(too many men on the ice), 6:39; Kennedy (W), holding stick, 9:33; Kennedy (W),
interference, 13:54; Ulanov (W), elbowing, 16:57; Ron Sutter (B), boarding,
18:42; Butcher (B), cross-checking, 19:38.

THIRD PERIOD

    W -- Steen 6 (Erickson, Druce) 3:39

    Penalties -- Lalor (W), cross-checking, 4:50; Bautin (W), roughing, 4:58;
Shanahan (B), roughing, 4:58; Shannon (W), boarding, 9:51; Druce (W), holding,
16:33; Brown (B), holding, 17:39.

SHOTS ON GOAL

    WINNIPEG    10     12     11  --  33

    BLUES        6     10     16  --  32

    Missed penalty shot -- Winnipeg, Housley, 12:51 third period.

    Power-play Opportunities -- Winnipeg 0 of 6; Blues, 0 of 8.

    Goaltenders -- Winnipeg, Essensa, 8-11-3 (32 shots-32 saves). Blues,
Joseph, 8-15-3 (33-32). Referee -- Mike McGeough. Linesmen--Mark Pare, Dan
Schachte. A --16,618.

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