Dunn deal: Blues beat Leafs in OT

[January 17, 2018]  Vince Dunn netted the overtime winner after the Blues scored in the final minute to tie the game, and St. Louis escaped with a 2-1 victory over the host Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday night.

Carter Hutton made 30 saves for the Blues, the biggest coming just before the winning goal when he denied William Nylander on a breakaway.

Soon after, Dunn, who hails from the Toronto area, zipped away from his own zone with the puck to create a two-on-one rush. He elected to shoot instead of passing on the odd-man break and cleanly beat Toronto goalie Frederik Andersen on the blocker side at 1:43 for his fourth goal of the season.

The win snaps a three-game losing streak for St. Louis, but it took some late heroics.

Toronto's Connor Brown, a 20-goal scorer last season who is skating on the fourth line, broke a scoreless deadlock midway through the third period.

Brown outraced Blues defenseman Alex Pietrangelo for a loose puck just outside the Toronto blue line for the breakaway, which he concluded with a top-shelf, glove-side effort that beat Hutton for his 11th of the season at 10:10.

However, Alexander Steen forced overtime in the final minute. Steen, who started his NHL career in Toronto, set up shop while the visitors pushed with their goalie pulled for the extra attacker, and he neatly slipped home a rebound chance for his seventh goal of the season with 57 seconds to go.

 

Blues left wing Alexander Steen (20) plays the puck against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre. The Blues beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

Andersen stopped 40 shots for the Maple Leafs, who have just two wins in their past eight games and went 2-2-2 during a six-game homestand.

Toronto's young star, Auston Matthews, played his fourth career game against St. Louis, and he has yet to net a point against the Blues.

St. Louis has now won 10 of its past 12 visits to Toronto, going 10-1-1.

--Field Level Media

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