The St. Louis Blues announced this morning that they placed forward Jaden Schwartz on injured reserve. Schwartz injured his right ankle yesterday blocking a shot in the first period of the Blues 6-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings. He will be re-evaluated in six weeks. The Blues also recalled forward Ivan Barbashev from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL.
Jaden Schwartz will be re-evaluated in six weeks after sustaining an ankle injury Saturday. Ivan Barbashev has been recalled from the Chicago Wolves. https://t.co/edkOQIjRAE #stlblues
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) December 10, 2017
Schwartz’s Injury History
In December 2014, Schwartz broke his right foot. In October 2015, Schwartz fractured his left ankle and missed over three months of the season to have surgery on it. If Schwartz’s last injury to his right foot did not heal properly, he could be sidelined for longer than six weeks. It could be bad enough for surgery, in which the timetable for return would be months instead of weeks.
Schwartz’s Injury Will Affect the St. Louis Blues
This injury may set the Blues back. The Blues have a record of 20-8-2 and currently lead the Central Division with 42 points. Jaden Schwartz is currently tied for ninth in the NHL in points with Connor McDavid with 35 points. He is +23 in 30 games this season, which is second in the NHL only behind another Blues forward, Brayden Schenn, who is +24. He has been playing on the first line with Brayden Schenn and Vladimir Tarasenko. This line has combined for 102 points in the Blues’ first 30 games of the season. Needless to say, the Blues need Schwartz to heal as quickly as possible if they want their success to continue.
Schwartz’s Career
Schwartz was the 14th overall draft pick of the Blues in 2010. He has played in 348 NHL games has 247 points averaging 17:20 minutes of ice time per game. He has had 3 career hat tricks. His career +/- is +83. He has 81 career penalty minutes. This season, he was on track to break his own record of 63 points well before the season ended.
