Alex Pietrangelo didn’t practice today, but he’s still expected to play tomorrow when his St. Louis Blues take on the Stars in Dallas.
Pietrangelo’s status was put into question after he got tangled up with J.T. Miller during last night’s 5-0 loss in New York.
Per Jeremy Rutherford of the Post-Dispatch, head coach Ken Hitchcock said this afternoon that Pietrangelo looked fine to play, but added they’d reevaluate him in the morning before making a final decision.
If Pietrangelo can’t play, the Blues would likely need to recall a d-man, as Robert Bortuzzo is already out with a lower-body injury, leaving them with just six available blue-liners.
Update: The Blues put Bortuzzo on injured reserve this afternoon, and recalled d-man Brad Hunt from AHL Chicago.
Here’s how the Post-Dispatch described the play on which Pietrangelo got hurt:
Pietrangelo, coming from an angle, tried to cut off Miller’s path to the net and his left leg collided with the left leg of the Rangers’ forward. Pietrangelo’s skate also got held up by Allen’s pads, perhaps adding to the pain. He laid on the ice briefly, then after the period skated off gingerly, accompanied by trainer Ray Barile.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” said Pietrangelo, who was the last to leave the locker room after receiving treatment and walked to the team bus with a limp.
Pietrangelo returned to the game for the start of the second period, but he was the last to come back to the ice. He finished the game but ended it with a season-low 21 minutes, 11 seconds of ice time.
The Blues (5-3-2) started the season with three straight wins, but have only managed two wins in their last seven. Their major issue has been scoring, and they have the NHL’s third-worst offense (2.2 goals per game) to prove it.
In fact, the Blues have scored just three goals in their last four games, and not even their penalty killing was good against the Rangers, who converted twice on the power play.