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Tarasenko heading back to St. Louis to get shoulder examined

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Keith Jones and Anson Carter share their predictions for Game 5s of the Lightning-Blue Jackets and the Bruins-Hurricanes series. Plus, they predict Game 4 of the first-round series between the Flyers and Canadiens.

Vladimir Tarasenko will miss the remainder of the Blues’ First Round series with Vancouver to get his surgically-repaired shoulder examined back in St. Louis.

An update on his status is expected Monday. Tarasenko has been deemed “unfit to play” the last two games for the Blues.

“He wasn’t comfortable with the way it felt,” said Blues head coach Craig Berube. “We’ve got to get it looked at.”

Tarasenko played only 10 games during the regular season after injuring his shoulder in late October. He required surgery and did not return to the Blues’ lineup until their exhibition game against the Blackhawks July 29. He played all three Round-Robin games and the first two against Vancouver before exiting the lineup.

“When you get something done like that and you’re out nine months, you’re going to have some issues when you come back no matter what,” Berube said. “We’ll see what shows up here and we can go from there.”

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If Tarasenko is able to return to the Edmonton bubble, he must quarantine until he produces four consecutive negative COVID-19 tests over a four-day period before rejoining his teammates.

“It’s concerning but we don’t know a lot,” Berube added. “I’m not going to jump to conclusions on anything. He’s not feeling right, so that’s why he’s going to get it looked at. It is concerning, but we’ve got to wait and see.”

St. Louis is currently tied 2-2 in their series with the Canucks with Game 5 Wednesday (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN).

MORE:
Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round schedule

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Sean Leahy is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @Sean_Leahy.