Brayden Schenn was taken aback a couple days ago when told of his goal-scoring drought.
The St. Louis Blues captain was talking to media members when, at the time, prior to a Wednesday game against the Los Angeles Kings, that his goal-scoring drought was 17 games, which was the longest of his NHL career, surpassing one he had of 16 games earlier in the season.
Schenn's streak reached 18 games and it came to a screeching halt on Saturday when he scored a beautiful goal in the third period, then added a shootout goal of a 3-2 win against the Minnesota Wild at Enterprise Center.
Blues player of the game vs. Wild: Brayden Schenn (1:15)
"It feels good to contribute on the scoresheet," Schenn said. "I’ve felt like you just have to keep on grinding and working when it’s not going your way sometimes. I was able to get a couple looks tonight and having fun playing with 'Tommer' [Robert Thomas] and [Jordan] Kyrou."
It was a goal created off a zone exit from Nick Leddy to Kyrou at the blue line. Kyrou was able to poke it past a pinching Jake Middleton to create an odd-man rush up ice. With Colton Parayko jumping into the play making a beeline to the net, Schenn had options: shoot or dish, making it tough for Wild defenseman Brock Faber to make a decision.
"Oh yeah, absolutely. It opens up the shot lane more," Schenn said of Parayko. "I looked at [Faber]. I just felt try and let one fly. I was able to beat [Marc-Andre] Fleury."
Schenn wired a wrist shot top right corner 27 seconds into the period to give the Blues a 2-0 lead at the time.
"That was a snipe. That was a sick shot," Kyrou said. "It was a big goal of the game too."
Schenn finished the game playing 20:53 with a team-high five shots on goal, one hit, one takeaway, three blocked shots and he won four of five draws for his most complete game in recent weeks.
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