NOTES Schwartz, Tarasenko have Blues close to Cup Final:

Jaden Schwartz is on a scoring run that has the St. Louis Blues dreaming big. Schwartz’s hat trick in Game 5 on Sunday helped give the Blues a 3-2 series lead against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference final and set the single-season franchise record for playoff wins. The Blues could advance to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1970 when they host Game 6 Tuesday night. “It’s probably tough to put into words,” Schwartz said. “It’s something that everyone’s worked for and dreamed about. You don’t want to look too far ahead. We all know how important and how hard that last win’s going to be. It would be a dream come true.” Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko have played huge roles in the Blues’ playoff success. Just not necessarily in the way that was expected. Tarasenko has come up with more big assists than goals against the Sharks. Meanwhile, Schwartz has found a scoring touch that eluded him during the regular season. After scoring 11 goals in 69 regular-season games, Schwartz has 12 goals in 18 playoff games. “He’s obviously a tenacious player, a hard-working player,” Blues coach Craig Berube said. “I know, goal-wise, he didn’t have a good regular season, but the work ethic was there and other things besides not producing with the goals.