St. Louis Blues fall short to the Dallas Stars in preseason match at Cable Dahmer Arena

St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars Faceoff at Center Ice. // Photo by Joe Ellett

At Cable Dahmer Arena’s third annual NHL preseason game Saturday evening, the St. Louis Blues took a heartbreaking loss to the Dallas Stars.

After losing both Kansas City preseason showcases over the last two years, one to the Stars, the Blues fought hard to give fans on the west side of the state a win to relish in, yet they fell just short in an overtime loss. 

In just over a minute in the first period, Brayden Schenn, Blue’s captain, scored a goal off of assists from Leo Loof and Jordan Kyrou to ignite the crowd. Unfortunately, that excitement was quickly silenced when Matej Blumel scored a goal for the Stars just 20 seconds later. 

Early punches were thrown and Schenn found himself hitting the net again a few minutes later to give the Blues the lead back and fans hope. The goal came off assists from Matthew Kessel and Brandon Saad.

Further into the first period, the Blue’s fast-paced play gained them another goal when Zachary Bolduc slang the puck into the net off passes from Zach Dean and Hugh McGing. Heading into the second period, St. Louis held a 3-1 lead and was looking forward to bringing Kansas City hockey fans a victory.

But this would be the last time that the Blues found the net against the Stars after Dallas’ defense played stellar in the second and third period.

St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars Faceoff in Dallas’ Zone. // Photo by Joe Ellett

Heading into the third, the finish line was still in sight for Blue’s fans, retaining their 3-1 lead. This was quickly diminished as Kyle McDonald scored a goal within the first three minutes of the period, and Matthew Seminoff scored shortly after, halfway through the period for the Stars.

Part of this could be attributed to the pulling of goalie, Jordan Bennington, who had only allowed one early goal. While goalie Colten Ellis did not have his best outing against the Stars, his two missed saves are not the only reason that Blues fans left the stadium disappointed.

Due to incredible defense down the stretch from the Stars, the Blues were only able to manage two shots on goal in the entire third period: Something that they will definitely need to clean up before the regular season.

The clock ran down in the third period as fans got amped to witness a 3v3 overtime period. Star’s allstar Jason Robertson managed to sweep down the ice and snipe a puck into the back of the net, giving Dallas the win just a minute into overtime and sending Blue’s fans home in silence.

Brayden Schenn has been named captain heading into the 2023-24 season and is looking to lead his young teammates into a successful season and clean up the mistakes that they made on Saturday night. 

“It’s an incredible honor. I’m lucky to rely on so many guys in the room that are able to lead in many different ways and focus on that,” Schenn says. “It’s still preseason, we’re gonna grow together and that’s what we’re focusing on.”

Being able to only play one game in Kansas City each year, Blue’s players are able to get a glimpse into what the hockey culture is like on this side of the state. 

“People love hockey here. Obviously they sold the rink for us tonight,” Schenn says. “Fans were incredible, loud, cheering us on, good energy in the building and it’s always good playing in games like that.”

St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars Players Skate Around Prior to Third Period. // Photo by Joe Ellett

After finishing third to last in the Western division last season, only winning 37 of their 82 games, the Blues hope that this game is merely a learning experience heading into the new year of play.

The Dallas Stars hope to continue their dominance heading into the season, after getting knocked out of last year’s NHL playoffs in a 4-2 series loss against the Las Vegas Golden Knights, who then went on to win the Stanley Cup.

Prior to the game, a tailgate party which featured a DJ, food trucks, and an outdoor hockey rink was held in the parking lot of Cable Dahmer Arena.

Members of the Kansas City’s local ECHL club, the Mavericks, roster and coaching staff also made their faces seen at the tailgate, signing autographs and taking pictures in an attempt to get fans amped for the kickoff of their season on Oct. 20.