Blues prospects in Springfield picking up contributions, including goalies Zherenko, Romanov, forward Peterson; Harenstam could be Sweden's starting goalie at World Junior Championship
Let's face it, the start to the season wasn't very good for the St. Louis Blues American Hockey League affiliate in Springfield, Mass.
But the Thunderbirds have gained steam of late, and their goalies are at the forefront of why.
Vadim Zherenko, a seventh-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft who many feel has sort of been lost in the organization's goalie shuffle, picked up two more road wins this week and has won three straight starts allowing just a single goal in each game and four of his past five starts.
Zherenko, who had allowed three or more goals in his four previous starts ands five of six games, backstopped a pair of 3-1 wins, including making 23 saves at Lehigh Valley last Wednesday, then stopping 29 shots on Saturday at Charlotte.
Zherenko, who has lowered his now 6-5-3-0 on the season with a 2.82 goals-against average and .911 save percentage, has stopped 97 of the past 100 shots in three games, good for a 1.00 GAA and .970 save percentage. When he started this streak, it was on Dec. 7 when he stopped 45 of 46 shots in a 3-1 win at Providence and earned the the AHL's Second Star of the day:
And for Georgi Romanov, who was acquired by from the San Jose Sharks organization when the Blues lost Colten Ellis on Waivers to the Buffalo Sabres, he lost 4-3 in overtime at Charlotte on Sunday but he has not lost in regulation his past six starts (3-0-3) after starting the season losing his first five starts.
Dating back to Nov. 15, Springfield has earned at least a point in 11 of its past 12 games (7-1-4-0) after starting the season winning just two of its first 14 games (2-10-0-2) and climb out of the Atlantic Division basement. Their goalies are a big reason why.
* Dylan Peterson -- A third-round pick in 2020, the power forward had himself a weekend against Charlotte, scoring twice in a 3-1 win on Saturday, then scoring again on a 4-3 overtime loss on Sunday.
His nifty little snap shot into the top right corner late in the second period tied the game 1-1 on Saturday before adding the insurance with the empty-netter:
His goal on Sunday, his fifth of the season, tied the game 2-2 in the second period on a backdoor redirection:
Peterson came into the weekend games with two goals and eight points in 16 games but now is up to 11 points, including five goals, in 18 games.
* Aleksanteri Kaskimaki -- After returning from his stint with the Blues, the third-round pick in 2022 has played two games with the Thunderbirds and had this goal and an assist in the win at Lehigh Valley last Wednesday, his second two-point game in his past four with Springfield:
* Jakub Stancl -- After scoring on Sunday with 1:36 to play to tie the game 3-3 in the 4-3 loss to Charlotte, Stancl now has at least a point in four of Springfield's past six games (four goals, two assists) to give the fourth-round pick in 2023 seven points (five goals, two assists) in 15 games this season:
* Justin Carbonneau -- The first-round pick (No. 19) in 2025 extended his point streak to five games (four goals, four assists) with an assist for Blainville-Boisbriand of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League in a 5-3 loss to Gatineau last Wednesday, then followed it up with this goal and assist in a 5-1 win over Rouyn-Noranda on Thursday:
The forward, who has at least a point in 10 of Armada's past 11 games (eight goals, nine assists), is up to 38 points (25 goals, 13 assists) in 27 games for the Armada, in first place by a point in the Western Conference at 19-8-4-0.
* Lukas Fischer -- The defenseman, a 2024 second-round pick who was traded to Soo by Sarnia of the Ontario Hockey League earlier in December, has five assists in a four-game point streak, picking up two helpers in the Greyhounds' 8-4 win at Saginaw last Wednesday, and adding another assist in a 6-2 loss to Windsor the following night, giving Fischer 23 points (three goals, 20 assists) in 31 games, including five assists in five games with Soo.
* Love Harenstam -- The 2025 sixth-round pick, who is in camp with Sweden for the upcoming World Junior Championship in St. Paul, Minn., has a real shot at being Sweden's starting goalie.
Harenstam stopped 23 of 25 shots against Canada in a 4-2 win on Saturday, a game in which Blues 2023 first-round pick (No. 25) Otto Stenberg's younger brother Ivar scored:
Unfortunately, the Blues will be down to just Harenstam and Adam Jiricek (Czechia) in the tournament after Adam Jecho, also of Czechia, had to bow out of the tournament and will be sidelined indefinitely with a hand injury:
* Ivan Vorobyov -- After putting up nearly a point per game (15 points; seven goals, eight assists) in 16 games for Voskresensk Khimik of Russia's VHL, the seventh-round pick in 2021 got called up to Moscow Spartak of the KHL and paid immediate dividends with this beautiful goal in a 2-1 win over SKA St. Petersburg, which is still without Blues prospect Matvei Korotky, on Saturday (highlight around the 9:45 mark):
* Arseny Koromyslov -- The 22-year-old defenseman, a fourth-round pick in 2022, has 13 points (12 assists) in 34 games for Chelyabinsk Traktor of the KHL, including four assists in a three-game point streak and played a season-high 23:32 in a 7-4 loss to Magnitogorsk Metallurg on Friday; he's averaging 17:57 per game this season.
* Mikhail Fyodorov -- Fyodorov got the best of Koromyslov on Friday playing for Metallurg and didn't register any points, but the fifth-round pick in 2025 did have a goal and an assist in a 6-1 win over HC Sochi last Wednesday, including this one-timer on the power-play (1:40 mark) and his assist (at the 4:30 mark) was also a beauty:
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