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In the opening stages of Sunday night’s 4-1 Blues win over the Predators, it was clear who the focus was on — both in person and on the broadcast.

Dalibor Dvorsky was making his NHL debut, and the celebrated prospect drew plenty of eyeballs.

During his “rookie lap,� a solo skate during warmup without a helmet and before the rest of his teammates arrive, Enterprise Center began to buzz with anticipation of his debut. When Dvorsky took the ice for his first shift — an offensive zone draw against Nashville’s Michael McCarron — he was shown on the video board to cheers from the Blues faithful.

“The crowd is amazing,� Dvorsky said. “It was awesome, and the first rookie lap, all the guys in the room were great. Unbelievable experience, and I’ll never forget it. The crowd was amazing. I loved every second of it.�

On the FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network telecast, production personnel placed a circle around Dvorsky’s skates to follow him as he moved around the ice. They did the same for a Blues power play in which Dvorsky’s pass to Zack Bolduc helped set up an Alexandre Texier power-play goal at the side of the net.

When it was announced inside the arena that Dvorsky picked up a secondary assist on Texier’s goal, the crowd erupted for what appeared to be Dvorsky’s first NHL point. It quickly was changed to Bolduc’s assist as Robert Thomas picked up the primary one.

“Smart, really patient with the puck,� Thomas said. “I thought he showed a lot of poise with it. He made a couple of really good backhand passes. That power-play goal, he’s under pressure, he makes a calm play to the middle to Boldy. Those are stuff that, especially in the first game, to have that kind of patience is really impressive.�

Dvorsky finished with 10:40 of ice time on 16 shifts, including 33 seconds of power-play time. He went 2 for 5 at the faceoff circle and did not attempt a shot.

“I liked him,� Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. “Really good. Made plays, moved pucks on first touch. That play he makes on the power play, which leads to the goal, it’s high-end. It’s a good start to his career. ... He knew what he was going to do with the puck before he got it. That’s usually a sign for really good hockey sense.�

Dvorsky is one of the key pieces of the Blues’ current retooling, a No. 10 pick from the 2023 draft that was the team’s highest selection in 15 years. He was promoted on Saturday night from AHL affiliate Springfield (Massachusetts), for which his 20 goals (in 57 games) were the third-most among AHL rookies.

The 19-year-old is in his first year of professional hockey in North America after previously playing professionally in Sweden, and with Sudbury in the OHL last season.

“I feel like I improved a lot in my game without the puck,� Dvorsky said. “Overall, I feel like I’m improving in every aspect of my game, not just one specific thing. I’m always trying to improve in everything.�

The Blues promoted Dvorsky because of a pair of absences up front. Pavel Buchnevich has missed the past two games because of illness, and Montgomery listed him as day-to-day. Oskar Sundqvist did not play Sunday to rest, a tactic used earlier this season to deliver him more recovery time from his knee surgery last year.

Dvorsky took Sundqvist’s spot on the third line between Texier and Mathieu Joseph. He said he did not expect to get the call up to the NHL.

“It was a little bit of a shock, I’m not going to lie,� Dvorsky said. “I didn’t really expect it. Obviously, awesome feeling and I’m really happy to be here.�

On a personal level, it worked out that Dvorsky’s father, also named Dalibor, was able to come to St. Louis for Sunday’s game because he was visiting his son in Springfield. He was set to go back to Slovakia on Sunday but instead changed his flights to St. Louis and arrived to watch his son play in the NHL.

“I think he didn’t mind it,� Dvorsky said.

The Blues used their second of four post-deadline non-emergency recalls on Dvorsky, and if he plays nine more games (regular season or playoffs), he will use a year of his entry-level contract. If not, it will slide and begin next season.

“Obviously, dreaming about it for a long time,� Dvorsky said. “I enjoyed every second of it. It was amazing.�

Holloway named third star

Blues forward Dylan Holloway was named the NHL’s third star of the week on Monday after posting one goal and six assists in four games. Holloway is currently riding a seven-game point streak that is tied with Sidney Crosby for the longest active one in the league.

Game Tuesday on Matrix, Victory+

The Blues’ game Tuesday night, at home against Montreal, will be televised on Matrix Midwest (Channel 32 over the air, Channel 6 on Spectrum cable) and streamed on Victory+ rather that appearing on usual Blues carrier FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network for both options.