Hofer Makes 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 night. It marked Hofer’s third career shutout and a strong response after relieving Jordan Binnington in a previous 6-1 defeat to the Washington Capitals.
“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 recorded one goal and two assists, while Justin Faulk added a goal and an assist for the Blues (5-8-2), who have now won two of their last three games. St. Louis decided to sit forward Jordan Kyrou, who had been tied for second on the team with eight points in 14 appearances.
“There were several people we weren’t happy with the effort last night,” said Blues coach Jim Montgomery. “It didn’t matter the role; there were a lot of guys that didn’t play up to their responsibilities. The players we went with gave us the best chance to win tonight.”
Buffalo goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 14 saves for the Sabres (5-5-4), whose seven-game point streak (3-0-4) came to an end.
Author’s Summary
Hofer’s shutout and Joseph’s key performance lifted the Blues to a resilient 3-0 win over the Sabres, halting Buffalo’s seven-game point streak.