ST. LOUIS — Blackhawks goaltender Jaxson Stauber couldn’t keep a smile off his face Saturday.
His expression could only mean one thing: He had won his first NHL start, backstopping the Hawks to a 5-3 victory over the Blues.
“I dreamed about this for so long; I didn’t know how it was going to feel,” he said. “But, yeah, it feels real good.”
Goalie coach Jimmy Waite had informed Stauber on Friday night that he was getting the nod, allowing time for his parents to fly in.
Then on Saturday morning, Stauber, 23, paused for a moment at the Enterprise Center red line to mentally prepare himself for the whirlwind ahead. At the time, the undrafted rookie out of Providence boasted only 12 AHL games of professional experience.
Once puck drop came around, though, he was unfazed. He made his first career save on Brandon Saad eight seconds in and his first big save on Ivan Barbashev five minutes later.
In the third period, when the Blues cut their deficit from 4-1 to 4-3, Stauber remained calm. Coach Luke Richardson praised him for making a savvy decision to play (rather than freeze) a late dump-in, allowing Jake McCabe to clear the zone. He finished with 28 saves.
“I was really sharp in my movements and really engaged throughout the course of the entire game,” Stauber said. “When you’re locked in like that, it always helps.”
Added Max Domi: “[I’m] really happy for him. That’s not an easy first game. There’s no easy first game, but he looked pretty composed. We gave up some grade-A [chances] early on, and he made some unbelievable saves to keep us in it.”
Goaltending issues instead appeared on the opposite end. The Hawks chased Blues stalwart Jordan Binnington by scoring four times on their first seven shots.
Jason Dickinson snapped his 30-game goal drought, tied a career high with three points and was also extremely engaged physically. Sam Lafferty snapped the Hawks’ 38-game short-handed goal drought and kept moving through an otherwise sluggish first period. Domi buried an important insurance goal.
The Hawks have won six of their last seven games, a rather incredible midwinter surge, after winning only four of 31 between Oct. 26 and Jan. 5. That’s bad news for management’s tanking goals but thrilling for the players, who were partying hard in the locker room.
“Winning’s fun,” Domi said. “That’s what we play for.”
Phillips thinking fast
Hawks prospect Isaak Phillips has been in the NHL more than a month and has settled into a rhythm.
“The first couple of games, I was not nervous, per se, but not holding on to [the puck] or making the right read, just trying to get it out of my hands,” Phillips said. “I am confident with my ability — I can skate with the puck and then make the pass. I definitely feel like I’m coming into my own.’’
He notched his fourth point of the season with an assist in his 11th game of this NHL stint and also dropped the gloves for his first fight, although he didn’t fare well against Barbashev.
Phillips can shoot, too — deceptively well for a defenseman. His slap shot comes with pace and power, and his first NHL goal last weekend against the Kraken was a perfectly placed backhander in tight.
“It’s not like I’m sitting on the bench, just watching and going, ‘Oh, my God, I’m here,’ ’’ he said. “I’m meant to be here. This is where I belong.”
