The St. Louis Blues got back in the win column Tuesday night and did it by surviving a swing in momentum, getting a key return on defense, and making a coaching statement with one of their young forwards.
St. Louis beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2, sweeping the season series for the second time in three seasons.
The Blues opened fast and spent much of the first period pushing Detroit back on its heels. They were firing pucks at John Gibson from the start, but all that pressure didn’t show up on the scoreboard. Instead, the Red Wings grabbed the late edge when Andrew Copp scored with 13 seconds left in the period after a misplay by Cam Fowler and Jake Neighbours led to an icing.
That kind of finish can change a game. This one didn’t.
Just 37 seconds into the second period, Pius Suter tied it up on a feed from Alexey Toropchenko. The goal was a milestone moment for Suter, his 100th career goal and 200th career point.
Jim Montgomery started the fourth line to open the period, and it paid off immediately. A few minutes later, Justin Barron put St.
Louis in front, and the Blues never gave the lead back. Jimmy Snuggerud added insurance late in the third.
One of the night’s biggest positives was Logan Mailloux’s return. He was back in the lineup for his first game of the season after getting hurt in the final game of the preseason.
Mailloux logged just over 18 minutes and put one shot on goal. It wasn’t a flashy debut to the year, but it was a solid first step after a long wait.
Montgomery had Mailloux on the Blues’ top pair, which says plenty about how the staff views him. The Ontario native flashed late last season, and now the Blues are giving him a chance to show he can pick up where he left off.
The other notable lineup storyline was Dalibor Dvorsky, who spent the final 34 minutes on the bench. He returned there with 13:48 left in the second period and never got back on the ice, finishing with nine shifts and 6:36 of ice time. Montgomery made it clear after the game that the decision was disciplinary, not injury-related.
Monty: "Just play faster. Play with more conviction.
He's not playing to the standard that we want our players to play with … tonight. When that happens, you risk the chance of being sat.
(MORE)
- Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) November 11, 2026
The message was plain: Montgomery still sees the upside, but he wants Dvorsky to meet a higher standard. Thursday will be the next chance to respond.
Ross Johnston also earned a stick tap for dropping the gloves with Andreas Englund midway through the second period. It was a reminder that the Blues still have a true enforcer type in the mix, even if that role looks different in today’s game. Johnston also finished plus-1, was on the ice for the Suter goal, and made his presence felt in 9:41 of ice time.
The Blues now head back on the road for their next game, a Thursday night meeting with the Utah Mammoth.
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The Red Wings keep running into the same issue in the lower half of their forward group: the bottom-six has not given them enough scoring punch, and that has shown up in the teams overall offensive consistency. Over the past few seasons, Detroit has cycled through different players in those spots, but the production has lagged well behind what the club gets from its top scorers, leaving a roster hole that has lingered longer than the front office would like.
There are a few ways the Wings could address it, starting with a call-up from the AHL if they want to inject some energy and skill into the lineup. The return of injured forwards Marco Kasper and Mason Appleton should help, and the trade market remains another avenue if Detroit decides the answer has to come from outside the organization. For now, the question is less about whether the problem exists and more about which fix the team chooses first. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Get A Key Piece Back And Still Can't Stop Sliding
John Gibson was back in net for Detroit on Monday night after missing time with a lower-body injury, and the veteran goalie gave the Red Wings a chance with 30 saves in a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues. Andrew Copp and Moritz Seider scored for Detroit, but the result still extended the slide to four straight defeats and five losses in six games, a stretch that has made every small positive feel a little harder to hold onto.
The timing only adds to the pressure, because the road trip rolls on with games against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning still ahead. Detroit has been looking for a way to steady itself, and getting Gibson back was part of that equation, but the latest result showed there is still plenty more to sort out before the trip turns around. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings And Dylan Larkin Are Now Locked In An Ugly Standoff
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The part that makes this situation especially tense is how little movement there has been on either side. Larkin has held firm on the destinations he would accept, even as interest around the league has started to surface, with the Blues among the teams reportedly keeping tabs. Detroit appears ready to move on, but until the trade list changes or another team meets the price, the Red Wings are stuck in a standoff that shows no sign of easing. [Read more 🡒]