Blues skate to 4-1 roadwin over Avalanche

DENVER -- Ryan Johnson scored St. Louis' second short-handed goal of the season and Manny Legace stopped 39 shots, lifting the Blues to a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.

Legace improved to 13-2-0 lifetime against the Avalanche with a 1.88 goals-against average.

Paul Kariya and Jay McClement scored first-period goals for the Blues, who've won two in a row.

David Backes added an empty-net goal with 1:27 remaining, his ninth goal of the season.

Johnson scored his short-handed goal 95 seconds into the second period, staking the Blues to a 3-0 lead and ending the night of Jose Theodore, who was pulled in favor of Peter Budaj.

Theodore saw just seven shots and stopped only four. Budaj turned back all 16 shots he faced in his relief appearance.

The Avalanche were finally able to solve Legace early in the third period when Ben Guite lined a shot over Legace's right shoulder for his eighth goal of the season.

Colorado fell to 3-7-2 at home over its past 12 games. The Avalanche still remain one of the top home teams in the league.

-- AP