Follow me on twitter Follow @stlgoalie Before leaving for their first preseason game in Dallas at 7:30pm CST, the Blues announced Jay Bouwmeester has a fractured ankle and won’t even be re-evaluated for three weeks and Zachary Sanford will require surgery for his dislocated surgery, likely putting him out 6 months. More on these in a few minutes.
When the Blues head to Dallas tonight, expect their lines to look like the following: Forwards Alexander Steen – Robby Fabbri- Samuel Blais Vladimir Sobotka – Robert Thomas – Jordan Kyrou MacKenzie MacEachern – Ivan Barbashev – Tage Thompson Wade Megan – Kyle Brodziak – Klim Kostin Justin Selman also on the trip
Defensemen Jake Walman – Robert Bortuzzo Vince Dunn – Nate Prosser Carl Gunnarsson – Jordan Schmaltz Thomas Vanelli on the trip as well
Goalies Carter Hutton and Jordan Binnington
The Stars are expected to ice the following lineup: Jamie Benn – Tyler Seguin – Alexander Radulov Mattias Janmark – Devin Shore – Brett Ritchie Antoine Roussel – Jason Dickinson – Tyler Pitlick Nick Caamano – Roope Hintz – Denis Gurianov Esa Lindell – John Klingberg Marc Methot – Stephen Johns Jamie Oleksiak – Julius Honka Ben Bishop and St. Louis native Mike McKenna
Tonight, you have to think that guys like Barbashev, Blais, Thompson, Megan and Kostin will really be pushing to make a positive impression. They may feel like the injuries to Sanford and Patrik Berglund have increased their chances in getting a roster spot. Walman, Dunn and Schmaltz also likely feel the same way with the Bouwmeester injury. When you look at the roster composition at forward with Sanford and Berglund on injured reserve (Sanford likely AHL IR), the Blues top 7 are locks (Tarasenko, Schenn, Stastny, Steen, Sobotka, Schwartz and Fabbri) with 4th liner Brodziak a lock and Thorburn as a press box/4th line lock. With nine forward spots secure, four or five remain open. One would assume that Jaskin, Bennett, Barbashev and Paajarvi have a strong inside track on those spots. Assuming they do and assuming the Blues want to save cap dollars while allowing their prospects to play rather than watch from the press box, the roster might already be effectively set. Of course, Megan, Blais, Kostin, Musil, Thompson and Sundqvist will all try to make enough of an impression to displace one of last year’s players or at least be in line for the first call up.
Speaking of Sundqvist for a moment, has anyone seen him or play and read much written about him lately? I’ve heard his name so little that I almost forgot to list him which would be unfair to him.
On the defensive end, Parayko, Pietrangelo, Edmundson, Bortuzzo, and Gunnarsson are locks. Bouwmeester’s injury leaves two spots to be filled from Lindbohm, Prosser, Schmaltz, Walman, Dunn and Butler. The only thing I am confident of in this area is that it won’t be both Prosser and Butler. I also think Dunn is a longer shot than the others. Other than that, your guess is as good as mine.
We’ll see tonight if the Blues can spoil former coach Ken Hitchcock’s first game back on his reunion tour with the Stars.
It’s a great day for hockey.
Fellow Hockeybuzz bloggers Nashville Predator's Paul McCann, Winnipeg Jet's Peter Tessier and Minnesota Wild's Dan Wallace have generously agreed to a friendly charity wager. We were hoping to do the whole division but don't have it fully represented yet. The blogger whose team finishes the highest the standings at the end of the year gets to pick a charity to whom the others will donate in their name.