Empty-Net Lab · St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues Goalie Pull Tracker
When the Blues pull the goalie down one and down two, how that compares with the rest of the league and with past coaches, what happens while the net is empty at both ends, and who is on the ice for it.
When the Blues pull the goalie, 2025-26
Share of late deficits with the goalie pulled, by time left in the 3rd period
When the Blues pull the goalie, 2025-26. STL down 1: half pulled by 1:56 remaining, 44% pulled with 2:00 left (22 trailing spells); STL down 2: half pulled by 3:44 remaining, 100% pulled with 2:00 left (20 trailing spells); NHL down 1: half pulled by 2:00 remaining, 51% pulled with 2:00 left (831 trailing spells).
Blues goalie pulls by coach
| Coach | Seasons | Median pull, down 1 | Pulled by 2:00 | Median pull, down 2 | Tied it, down 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Montgomery | 2024-25 to 2025-26 | 2:02 (37) | 53% | 3:47 (37) | 3 / 27 |
| Drew Bannister | 2023-24 to 2024-25 | 1:53 (25) | 33% | 3:45 (22) | 2 / 18 |
| Craig Berube | 2018-19 to 2023-24 | 1:56 (101) | 40% | 3:19 (106) | 10 / 65 |
| Mike Yeo | 2017-18 to 2018-19 | 1:48 (30) | 42% | 2:30 (24) | 2 / 21 |
Regular season since 2017-18, every club of the franchise. In brackets: late deficits behind the median; coaches with fewer than 10 are a small sample.
Blues season by season
| Season | Median pull, down 1 | Median pull, down 2 | 6v5 time | GF pulled | ENG against | ENG for | GA vs extra attacker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | – (0) | – (0) | 0:00 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025-26 | 1:56 (22) | 3:44 (20) | 36:34 | 4 | 12 | 13 | 3 |
| 2024-25 | 1:55 (26) | 3:56 (24) | 58:53 | 7 | 12 | 11 | 12 |
| 2023-24 | 1:45 (17) | 3:58 (24) | 49:11 | 5 | 20 | 14 | 3 |
| 2022-23 | 1:50 (26) | 3:08 (30) | 38:12 | 4 | 21 | 14 | 11 |
| 2021-22 | 1:59 (23) | 3:38 (21) | 43:09 | 7 | 13 | 21 | 6 |
| 2020-21 | 1:46 (16) | 3:19 (16) | 36:55 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 6 |
| 2019-20 | 1:43 (19) | 2:37 (17) | 28:39 | 2 | 15 | 12 | 4 |
| 2018-19 | 2:20 (20) | 3:20 (14) | 39:24 | 4 | 11 | 9 | 5 |
| 2017-18 | 1:48 (24) | 2:30 (23) | 36:06 | 7 | 14 | 12 | 5 |
Who is on the ice for the Blues, 2025-26
Extra attacker (6-on-5)
- Pavel Buchnevich24:57 · 68%
- Cam Fowler20:15 · 55%
- Robert Thomas17:38 · 80%
- Jake Neighbours16:59 · 55%
- Justin Faulk16:57 · 63%
- Jimmy Snuggerud16:23 · 49%
- Dylan Holloway15:37 · 61%
- Jordan Kyrou15:31 · 45%
Empty-net defense
- Philip Broberg37:43 · 73%
- Colton Parayko27:18 · 59%
- Robert Thomas22:51 · 46%
- Pavel Buchnevich19:59 · 39%
- Pius Suter16:55 · 37%
- Justin Faulk13:02 · 35%
- Cam Fowler11:42 · 23%
- Oskar Sundqvist11:37 · 40%
Empty-net goals
- Robert Thomas3 G, 0 A
- Dylan Holloway2 G, 0 A
- Jordan Kyrou2 G, 0 A
- Pius Suter2 G, 0 A
- Pavel Buchnevich1 G, 3 A
- Jimmy Snuggerud1 G, 2 A
- Justin Faulk1 G, 1 A
- Jake Neighbours1 G, 0 A
% = share of the team's time in that situation in the games the player dressed. Empty-net defense time is where empty-net goals come from.
Recent Blues goalie pulls
| Date | Opponent | Down | Pulled with | Time pulled | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 9 | WPG | 1 | 1:27 | 1:24 | No goal |
| Apr 7 | COL | 2 | 4:20 | 4:09 | No goal |
| Mar 30 | SJS | 1 | 0:22 | 0:22 | No goal |
| Mar 15 | WPG | 2 | 3:47 | 2:56 | Scored |
| Mar 15 | WPG | 1 | 0:51 | 0:51 | No goal |
| Feb 28 | NJD | 2 | 3:16 | 1:58 | Scored |
| Feb 28 | NJD | 1 | 1:18 | 1:13 | Empty-net goal against |
| Feb 4 | DAL | 1 | 0:23 | 0:23 | No goal |
| Feb 2 | NSH | 1 | 1:04 | 1:01 | No goal |
| Jan 31 | CBJ | 1 | 1:05 | 0:35 | Empty-net goal against |
| Jan 27 | DAL | 1 | 1:07 | 1:07 | No goal |
| Jan 24 | LAK | 1 | 2:26 | 0:16 | Scored |
FAQ
When do the Blues pull their goalie?
In 2025-26 under Jim Montgomery, the St. Louis Blues had pulled their goalie in half of their late one-goal deficits with 1:56 left in the 3rd period, and in 44% with 2:00 or more left (22 games trailing by one in the last 10 minutes).
How many empty-net goals have the Blues allowed?
With their goalie pulled in 2025-26, the St. Louis Blues scored 4 and allowed 12 empty-net goals in 36:34 of 6-on-5 time. Defending an empty net, they scored 13 empty-net goals and allowed 3 goals to the extra attacker.
How is goalie pull time measured?
From the NHL shift charts: the first moment in a deficit when the team had no goalie on the ice, excluding delayed penalties. The curve counts every late deficit, including ones erased before a pull, so it is not biased toward long deficits.