St. Louis Blues goaltender Joel Hofer turned in a standout performance Thursday night, recording his first shutout of the NHL season in a 3-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres.
Hofer stopped all 28 shots he faced at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, outdueling Sabres netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who surrendered two goals on 16 shots before Buffalo allowed an empty-net marker late. The 25-year-old, who has ties to both New Haven Colony and Keystone Colony, now has three career NHL shutouts after earning one in each of the last two seasons.
Mathieu Joseph and Nick Bjugstad supplied the offence for St. Louis, while Justin Faulk sealed the victory with an empty-netter. The win marked the Blues’ fifth of the campaign and halted Buffalo’s seven-game point streak.
Hofer improved his season totals to a 4.08 goals-against average and an .864 save percentage. Since making his NHL debut in 2021-22, the young netminder has collected 37 wins across 76 appearances as he continues to work his way into a larger role in the Blues’ crease.
