Well, that was fun wasn't it?

Probably something fans are more accustomed to perhaps seeing earlier in the season came to fruition in a pre-Thanksgiving goal-scoring extravaganza, one that the St. Louis Blues prevailed in with a wild and wacky 6-5 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Wednesday at Mullett Arena.

If you're an offensive player, then you're happy with the results. If you're a defensive skater or goalie -- at least a the starting goaltenders -- you're covering your eyes.

This one had a lot of everything, but the Blues were able to prevail with a big Kevin Hayes goal in the third period to consummate a game in which there were four -- yes, four! -- lead changes when entering Wednesday, the Blues had not played one single minute this season where a lead change occurred. That run finally ended 22 seconds into the second period of this one and ended the streak at 1,050:22. 

The Blues had six different goal scorers Wednesday, including two more shorthanded goals by Nick Leddy and Alexey Toropchenko on the same shift that ties them for the league lead with six with the Dallas Stars.

So without further ado, let's look at the three-period takeaways and how this all unfolded:

* First Period -- Nothing spoke that things would start getting crazy, even as Brayden Schenn was called for slashing at 4:20, which the Blues killed effectively and without allowing any high danger scoring chances against.

But when Schenn scored on a breakaway at 8:47 of the period to give the Blues a 1-0 lead, all heck broke loose.

Schenn's goal was created by pressure by his line, and they forced Coyotes forward Nick Schmaltz into a turnover in the Blues' zone, and Schenn was off to the races before beating Karel Vejmelka with a nifty forehand, backhand, top-shelf finish.

But Arizona would tie it less than two minutes later when Nick Bjugstad's goal high on the short side from the inner slot made it 1-1 at 10:40, and it followed Nick Leddy getting stripped of the puck in the d-zone corner by two forecheckers.

But then Colton Parayko restored the Blues' lead at 2-1 with a rocket goal from the top of the right circle at 12:15, and it came off pressure once again from the Schenn line, but a giveaway by Coyotes defenseman Sean Durzi gave the puck to Brandon Saad, who alertly found Parayko coming downhill for the tee-up goal.

Then a two-goal swing occurred and may have prevented the hectic back-and-forth, but Brandon Saad and Jake Neighbours had a chance to give the Blues a 3-1 lead off a 2-on-1, and Vejmelka initially stopped Saad's first attempt, but the Blues forward put the rebound wide of the net and Arizona was headed the other way, and Jason Zucker tied the game 2-2 at 18:06 when he was able to get inside of Torey Krug and knock home Michael Carcone's puck to the slot. 

* Second Period -- So after Arizona caught the Blues twice in the first, they finally got a lead of their own, and it didn't take long.

Lawson Crouse gave the Coyotes a 3-2 lead 22 seconds into the period, an open chance from the slot after Leddy lost handle of the puck, and when Blues defenseman Scott Perunovich was whistled for holding the stick at 2:42, it could have gotten away from the Blues, but the penalty kill was up to the task again and factor in helping not only tie the game but help the Blues regain the lead.

Leddy tied it 3-3 at 3:40 when they were able to get out of the zone, and Kasperi Kapanen feathered a pass onto a streaking Leddy's stick, and he deked past Vejmelka for a backhand finish, although it seemed like Vejmelka could have taken a strike or two and knocked that puck away, instead opting to try and play it from top of the crease and whiffed when Leddy came in with speed.

That's a big momentum shift, but it wasn't done there. Alexey Toropchenko made it 4-3 with a shorthanded goal of his own at 4:13 after Justin Faulk alertly intercepted a Matias Maccelli pass into the middle of the ice, sprung Toropchenko up the left side, but notice the drive to the net by Jake Neighbours, who likely had the defensemen guessing and backing in allowing Toropchenko to fire high over Vejmelka's shoulder, ending the Yotes netminder's night; he allowed four goals on 11 shots.

However, Arizona was able to turn the tides, and quickly. 

Carcone tied the game 4-4 at 6:56, quick snap shot from the slot under the bar that needed a buzzer from Toronto to indicate a goal, and Nick Schmaltz ended Jordan Binnington's night with a shot off the left boards at 8:00 to give Arizona a 5-4 lead, a shot high short side past a screening Parayko. 

Binnington allowed five goals on 13 shots. Not a night either starting goalie will want to remember.

But then Robert Thomas scored to tie it 5-5 at 10:49, ending a stretch of 10 goals in 22:02 when he beat Connor Ingram, who replaced Vejmelka, five-hole from the slot off a rebound of Jordan Kyrou's shot.

Somebody had to make a save right?

Well, Hofer did. He kept it 5-5 when he made a nice pad stop of Maccelli's drive cutting in off the right edge with 2:08 left.

* Third Period -- Would there be wildness again after that 22-plus minute stretch?

It settled down, but the Blues tried to open another period sloppy.

Well, as a matter of fact, it was a sloppy start, and they caught a fortunate break after coughing up the puck three times in their done when Durzi hit the left post 35 seconds in, then the physical play came in when Toropchenko and Michael Kesselring went to the box at 1:01, Toropchenko for kneeing Logan Cooley and Kesselring for retaliating and getting a roughing minor.

The key sequence came when Hofer made a really good stretching left pad stop on Zucker cutting in around the left edge when he beat Kevin Hayes, but it was Hayes who would give the Blues the lead at 6-5 at 4:13 when he was sprung on a breakaway by Saad, and Hayes in tight was able  to go backhand, forehand on Ingram.

The Blues had the chance to put the game away when Kesselring was again whistled for roughing at 5:26, then defenseman Troy Stecher was called for slashing at 6:11, giving the Blues 1:16 of a two-man advantage.

But not only did they squander that opportunity, but Arizona actually had the best scoring chance when Perunovich fell down at the blue line giving Bjugstad a 3-on-5 breakaway, and it appeared Hofer got a piece of the backhand but it was credited as a high high with 12:45 to play.

That could have been disastrous.

The Blues had another chance on the power play with defenseman Matt Dumba in the box for tripping Saad behind the Arizona net at 10:36, and Saad had the best chance when he redirected a pass off the near post with 7:25 to play, but the power play left the door open for Arizona.

However, Hofer was alert on a centering pass from the corner off one of his teammates and kicked the puck out of harm's way with 5:25 remaining, and Hayes, who was 79 percent from the face-off dot, was instrumental in the circle down the stretch when the Coyotes pulled Ingram to help the Blues finish the trip at .500 and holding down a playoff position heading into Thanksgiving.