Key keywords: Nick Schmaltz, Arizona Coyotes, NHL overtime loss, two points performance, 2023-2024 NHL Regular Season, power play goal, game recap, Clayton Keller, NHL offensive performance The Arizona Coyotes fell 4-3 to the St. Louis Blues in a tightly contested NHL regular season matchup on Wednesday night at Mullett Arena, with star center Nick Schmaltz delivering a standout two-point performance that kept his team in contention until the final seconds of overtime. Schmaltz got the Coyotes on the board first in the second period, firing a top-shelf wrist shot past Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington on a power play opportunity to level the score at 1-1, after St. Louis took an early lead off a first-period breakaway goal from winger Pavel Buchnevich. The 27-year-old forward followed up that effort late in the third period, dishing a cross-ice pass to linemate Clayton Keller, who buried a one-timer with 1:17 left in regulation to tie the game at 3-3 and force overtime. Despite Schmaltz’s heroics, the Blues secured the extra point just 1:42 into the overtime period, when All-Star forward Robert Thomas skated past two Coyotes defenders and slotted a backhand shot past Arizona netminder Karel Vejmelka for the game-winning goal. Head coach Andre Tourigny praised Schmaltz’s performance in his post-game press conference, noting that the veteran forward has been the team’s most consistent offensive contributor throughout the 2023-24 campaign. “Nick brings that level of intensity and execution every single night, especially in high-stakes moments,” Tourigny told reporters. “That game-tying assist late in the third was exactly the kind of play we rely on him to make, and there’s no question we wouldn’t have even made it to overtime without his contributions tonight.” Schmaltz, who now has 52 points (19 goals, 33 assists) in 47 games this season, spoke to reporters after the loss, expressing frustration with the team’s defensive lapses but optimism about their upcoming stretch of games. “We had a lot of good looks tonight, we controlled possession for most of the third period, but we gave up too many odd-man rushes when it counted,” he said. “We’ve got a big stretch of divisional games coming up against Vegas and Colorado, so we’ve got to clean up those mistakes and build on the positive parts of tonight’s performance.” The Coyotes currently sit 6th in the NHL’s Central Division with 51 points, holding onto the second wild card spot in the Western Conference playoff race by just two points over the Nashville Predators.