On a day where the St. Louis Blues announced that goaltender Jake Allen was taken off injured reserve after missing a month of action, the injury bug has plagued the club yet again in the 2015-2016 regular season.
Alexander Steen has been placed on IR due to an upper-body injury he suffered on Saturday night when the Blues took on the Arizona Coyotes. He will be re-evaluated in four weeks, according to the team.
Alexander Steen Placed on Injured Reserve by St. Louis Blues
The 31-year-old forward was hit by Coyotes blueliner Kevin Connauton in the first period and crashed into the boards, using his left arm to brace his fall. He grimaced in pain for a moment before skating off the ice and heading straight to the locker room.
Steen did not return to the game, but had already scored a goal and added an assist before the injury occurred. The Blues ended up victorious over Arizona by a score of 6-4.
Steen currently ranks second for St. Louis in goals (17) and points (47) behind Vladimir Tarasenko. He has continued to play heavy minutes for the Blues this season at even-strength, on the power play and the penalty kill. His name was considered to be in the Frank J. Selke conversation as the NHL’s most competent defensive forward.
With one of the team’s top scorers out at least a month, the spotlight focuses to Blues GM Doug Armstrong, as the NHL’s trade deadline is February 29th. It was speculated that Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jonathan Drouin was in the mix along with Blues rookie Robby Fabbri, but as of right now, those talks have fizzled off. Winnipeg Jets forward Andrew Ladd and Boston Bruins forward Loui Eriksson are also some of the names that Armstrong could pursue over the next week.
