ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Blues' streak of nine straight games with a point came to an end on Saturday night with a 4-1 loss to Anaheim at Enterprise Center that included the NHL debut of top Blues prospect Klim Kostin.
The Blues gifted Anaheim two goals of the four goals, one on a deflected clearing attempt that caromed in front of the net and was tapped in before Jordan Binnington could get back in the crease and another was shorthanded when Justin Faulk put a pass right on Derek Grant's stick for a breakaway. Grant finished a hat trick with an empty-net goal with 1:39 to play. Grant had two goals this season coming into the game.
The Blues outshot the Ducks 37-25, but continued their recent history of not being able to put the puck in the back of the net. Many of the Blues shots came from outside, and that's where their one goal, by Vince Dunn, came from.
The Blues had won seven in a row, then lost two straight in overtime. The last time the Blues didn't get a point was Oct. 26 at Boston.
Kostin was noticeable in his debut, with three hits in the first period and a crash into the net in the second period as he chased a puck.
Anaheim took a 2-0 lead into the second period, and the Blues had cut in half on a goal by Dunn that Anaheim goalie John Gibson wasn't expecting. The Blues had a power play and a chance to catch up on a high-sticking call on Devin Shore, but late in the penalty, Faulk tried to pass in his own end to Dunn and gave the puck to Derek Grant, who came in alone on Jordan Binnington and scored to make it 3-1. It's the third shorthanded goal the Blues have allowed this season in 21 games.
That took some wind out of the Blues, though they were the dominant team in the second period, outshooting Anaheim 15 to 10 and having some good chances.
Oskar Sundqvist spent four minutes in the penalty box after running into Gibson behind the Anaheim goal, where he had gone to play the puck. This was not well received by Gibson's teammates, who descended on Sundqvist. He got two minutes for charging and two for roughing (though who he roughed isn't quite clear since he had two Ducks on top of him) while Nicolas Deslauriers got two for roughing as the first Duck to jump on Sundqvist. But the Blues killed the penalty.
The Blues were 0 for 3 on the power play.
Kostin had a team-high three hits in the first period and one more in the second. He had a shot on goal in the second as he crashed into Gibson chasing a rebound. He played on a line with fellow 20-year-old Robert Thomas and not quite 20-year-old Tyler Bozak. (He's 33.) Kostin made the ceremonial solo lap on the ice during pregame warmups.
As for the Blues, it was reminiscent of Friday night in Columbus, where the first period was not good. This one wasn't too great either.
The Blues gave up a goal four minutes in on a two-on-one that Ryan Getzlaf finished on a feed from Max Jones. A little less than two minutes later, it was 2-0. Binnington went behind his net to get a puck, passed behind the goal line to Alex Pietrangelo, who tried to clear the puck on his backhand, only to hit the skate of Anaheim's Nicolas Deslauriers and have it go right to Derek Grant, who got to the puck before Binnington could get back to the net and he whacked it into the open net.
As for Kostin, coach Craig Berube wanted him to play a simple game in his debut.
"He's got to keep the game simple, for sure," Berube said. "He's a big, physical guy, play your game. Work the puck in the offensive zone, be strong on it, be physical, but at the same time disciplined. Keep it simple. Keep your shifts short, go in straight lines up and down the ice. He's a big guy, he's got a good shot, use your shot. Get to the net."
