St. Louis Blues captain David Backes hasn’t played since he was the victim of a high hit by Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook on Saturday. That will change tonight when St. Louis takes on Chicago in Game 5 of the first round series.
Backes is taking part in St. Louis’ pregame warmups and will be in the lineup, per CBS Sports’ Andy Strickland.
Getting the gritty 29-year-old forward back is naturally a big development for the Blues after they lost back-to-back contests to Chicago without him. The series is now tied at 2-2.
This is also surprising news given that he wasn’t on the ice for the team’s morning skate. At the time, Blues coach Ken Hitchcock insisted that reporters shouldn’t jump to conclusions.
“Like I said in Chicago, there are lots of rinks here in St. Louis too. You never know. Might just jump on the ice and be there,” said Hitchcock, according to CSN Chicago.
Blues lines: Schwartz-Backes-Oshie, Steen-Sobotka-Tarasenko, Ott-Berglund-Cracknell, Porter-Lapierre-Reaves.
— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) April 25, 2014