The Blues have been playing musical chairs with their line-up all season long thanks to an injury bug that they can't shake. What's two more players out for the rest of the regular season?
What if those two players are David Backes and Jake Allen?
From the Blues' official release:
St. Louis Blues President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong announced today that forward David Backes and goaltender Jake Allen will miss the remainder of the regular season with lower-body injuries.
Both will be re-evaluated at the conclusion of the regular season.
Backes, 31, has dressed in all 79 games this season, ranking second on the club with 21 goals and fourth with 45 points overall. The Minneapolis, Minnesota native is currently in his 10th NHL season after being drafted by the Blues in the second round (62nd overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. Backes has tallied 460 points (206 goals, 254 assists) and 969 penalty minutes in 727 career regular season games.
Allen, 25, has appeared in 47 games this season, posting a 26-15-3 record. In addition, he shares 10th overall with a .920 save percentage and second with six shutouts. The Fredriction, New Brunswick, native is currently in his third NHL season after being drafted by the Blues in the second round (34th overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. In 99 career regular season games, Allen has accumulated a 57-26-7 record, a 2.34 goals against average, a .915 save percentage and 11 shutouts.
Backes has been playing solid hockey as of late on a line with Patrik Berglund and Alexander Steen. Jake Allen, well, he's also had a light's out season. While news of Allen's injury broke during the game last night, Backes' benching comes as a surprise. If both players are out for the first round (probably against Chicago), this may ding the Blues' rising playoff hopes, as the team is in the middle of finishing the season playing the best that they have all year.