Two Blues players enjoying long-awaited opportunities received devastating injury blows as the team heads into its All-Star bye week break.
The longest term is Mackenzie MacEachern, who will miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury requiring surgery. MacEachern returned to the Blues this season and finally got an extended look at the NHL level with eight games in December, but then was dropped back to AHL Springfield in favor of Nathan Walker by new coach Drew Bannister.
This ends what little chance at an opportunity he had left for this season, but he does have another year (and guaranteed one-way salary) on his contract.
Then there is the case of Scott Perunovich, whose pro career has been repeatedly interrupted by long-term injury. The Blues brought him back slowly following shoulder surgery last season by keeping him at the AHL level, setting up this season’s triumphant return to knock-on-wood health.
Well, he made it 31 games — a new NHL career high. He even had two assists vs. the Kings before leaving the game with his injury.
But it sounds like he may be back this season. The Blues have only said that he’ll be reevaluated for his lower body injury after the break, but the words from Bannister (“what we thought it would be, that it would keep him out for a bit of time”) and the fact he was in a boot make it sound like it’s a 4-6 week break or similar rather than a 1-2 week thing.