NHL: Blues score late to top Blackhawks

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St. Louis • Alexander Steen's slap shot with 21.1 seconds remaining beat Chicago goalie Corey Crawford and gave the St. Louis Blues a 3-2 win over the Blackhawks on Wednesday night.

Steen broke down the left side as part of a 3-on-1 rush. He kept the puck and let go a drive from just inside the circle that trickled through Crawford.

The Blues (3-0) matched their best start to a season, also done in the 1969-70 and 1993-94 campaigns. Jaroslav Halak made 26 saves in his third straight win. Vladimir Tarasenko and David Backes also scored for St. Louis.

Patrick Kane scored for the third straight game for the Blackhawks, and Jonathan Toews had the other Chicago goal. Crawford made 31 saves.

Flames 3, Canadiens 2 • At Calgary, Alberta, rookie forward Sean Monahan had a goal and an assist, and Joey MacDonald made 33 saves in Calgary's victory against visiting Montreal.

Sven Baertschi and Curtis Glencross also scored for Calgary (2-0-2).

NHL bans Sharks D Stuart for 3 games

San Jose Sharks defenseman Brad Stuart has been suspended for three games, without pay, by the NHL for an illegal check to the head of New York Rangers forward Rick Nash.

Stuart was given a minor penalty for elbowing 2:32 into San Jose's 9-2 win on Tuesday night. The league's Department of Player Safety handed out a stiffer punishment Wednesday.