(AP) - Chris Stewart completed his first NHL hat trick with a penalty shot, and Milan Hejduk scored twice in his return from a seven-week injury layoff to help the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 7-3 on Saturday night. Craig Anderson made 39 saves in his team-record 20th consecutive start for Colorado. The Avalanche beat St. Louis for the third time in three meetings this season, snapping the Blues' season-high five-game winning streak. Stewart, who boosted his season total to 24 goals, had crossed the blue line on a breakaway when beaten Blues defenseman Erik Johnson tripped him in a desperate attempt to stop him, leading to the penalty shot. Stewart slowly skated down the middle and put a shot into the upper right corner above Ty Conklin's glove hand with 57 seconds remaining in the second period.
(From Peoria Rivermen) - A 15-year-old attendance record fell Saturday night as the 10,129 fans watched the Peoria Rivermen defeat the Lake Erie Monsters 3-1 at Carver Arena. The previous attendance record for professional hockey in Peoria was 9,427 set March 4, 1995. Lars Eller had a hand in all three Rivermen goals, as he scored the first and assisted on the final two. He now has five points (two goals, three assists) in the last two games for Peoria and now leads the team with 41 points. Derek Armstrong (one goal, one assist) and Tyson Strachan (two assists) also had multi-point nights. The Rivermen also hosted a Legends Game in which 14 former ECHL and IHL Rivermen took on the local firefighters in a pregame exhibition. The Rivermen begin a seven-game road trip Sunday in Milwaukee.
