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David Backes is day-to-day with a lower-body injury

backesgetty

James OBrien

The St. Louis Blues are facing some of - if not the - toughest times of their impressive 2013-14 season during its last week or so. If it wasn’t enough that they lost their third game in a row on Tuesday, it also appears that rugged captain David Backes suffered an injury.

The team labels him day-to-day with a lower-body injury, as NHL.com’s Lou Korac reports.

It’s unclear how severe the injury is beyond that vague reading. Many believe that Backes, 29, was injured when he took a shot off his foot.

It’s been one of the American forward’s best seasons, as he has 27 goals (his third-best total, as he hit 31 twice in his career) and 57 points (second only to 62 scored in 2010-11). Backes already set career-highs in power-play goals (10) and game-winners (five) this season.

It will be interesting to see how St. Louis handles this situation if it’s a judgment call. They only have three games left and already clinched a playoff spot, but quite a few seedings races could go sour. Their once-firm grip on the Central Division seems to be slipping a bit (opening up the possibility of a first-round series against Chicago, they may also lose out on the West’s top seed and the Presidents’ Trophy is that much tougher to grasp with Boston three points ahead of them.

Perhaps Backes will be just fine or clearly too injured to make it a difficult decision, but if not, the Blues may face a tough judgment call toward the end of the regular season.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins