Blues playoff hopes dealt major blow with 2-1 overtime loss to Kings

Matthew DeFranks, St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Apr 2, 2026

Published in Hockey

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The Blues were left for dead in January, but their March revival might have just died on the first day of April.

A 2-1 overtime loss to the Kings on Wednesday night could be the final blow to the Blues' slim playoff chances, as they are four points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference with just eight games remaining.

Trevor Moore scored the game-winning goal for the Kings at 1:56 of overtime, holding off Jonatan Berggren before flipping his 11th goal of the season over Jordan Binnington's shoulder. Moore has been a bother to the Blues this season, as he also scored on Jan. 24 before winning the game in the fourth round of the shootout.

The Blues forced overtime thanks to Robert Thomas' goal with 3:53 remaining in the third period, as a Philip Broberg shot pinballed off Quinton Byfield and then Thomas before finding the back of the net.

Adrian Kempe scored on the power play in the second period to give the Kings a 1-0 lead.

Entering this four-game road trip, the Blues had a chance to be in a playoff spot by the time they left Los Angeles on Wednesday night. But a goal in the last minute of regulation Monday in San Jose left them with zero points, and Moore's winner prevented the Blues from claiming an extra one vs. the Kings.

To compound the Blues' pain, the Sharks scored twice in the last 1:39 to come back and beat the Ducks 3-2.

Wednesday's results left the Blues (74 points in 74 games played) with five teams to overtake to claim the second wild card spot in the West: Los Angeles (78 in 74 GP), San Jose (77 in 73 GP), Nashville (77 in 74 GP), Winnipeg (76 in 74 GP), and Seattle (75 in 73 GP).

After losses to the Sharks and Kings, the Blues only have one game remaining against a team they're chasing. That is at home on April 9 against the Jets.

The Predators, meanwhile, still play the Sharks and Kings twice each down the stretch, ensuring one team ahead of St. Louis picks up two points in each of those games.

The Blues, despite picking up one point on Wednesday, still exited the day with the fifth-worst record in the NHL.

Coming out hot

The overtime period opened with the teams trading high-danger chances. The Blues had the first prime look when Thomas delayed to free up Broberg in the left circle with a good look at the net. Broberg tried to step around Anton Forsberg in goal, but couldn't get a shot away. The rebound couldn't be corralled by Dylan Holloway.

With all three Blues in tight to the Kings crease, Los Angeles forward Artemi Panarin sprung Kempe for a breakaway from the red line in on Binnington. Binnington was able to make a toe save to extend the game.

Binnington also made a save at the buzzer of regulation, closing his legs in time, but it was ruled that the Kings shot was too late and would not have counted.

A puck slipped past Binnington in the second period, as Jared Wright appeared to score to give the Kings a 1-0 lead. But the goal was disallowed due to goaltender interference on Joel Armia. It would have been Wright's first career NHL goal, but the Kings opted not to challenge the call on the ice.

Binnington also made a big save on Taylor Ward in the first period following a Jordan Kyrou turnover in the Blues zone. Ward ended up fighting Blues forward Jack Finley early in the third period. It was Finley's first fight since joining the Blue during the Olympic break.

Rookie of the Month

Forward Jimmy Snuggerud was named the NHL's rookie of the month in March after he had seven goals and eight assists in 14 games. He led all rookies in the month in goals (7), even-strength goals (7), even-strength assists (7), even-strength points (14) and plus-minus (plus-14).

He became the first Blues rookie with at least 15 points in a month since Rod Brind'Amour in Nov. 1989.

Snuggerud's honor was the first for a Blues rookie since Jordan Binnington was the league's rookie of the month in Feb. and March 2019. Vladimir Tarasenko was the last Blues skater to earn the honor in Jan. 2013.

With one more point, Snuggerud would become the first Blues rookie since Patrik Berglund in 2008-09 to accumulate 40 points in a season.

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