The Blues could have reinforcements when they resume their "Occupy First Place" movement tonight at Scottrade Center.
The team will play host to the Edmonton Oilers at 7 with a chance â€" depending on the outcome of games involving the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings â€" to move back into a tie atop the NHL standings. The Blues enter the evening with 60 points, based on their 27-12-6 record.
To aid in the cause, they are likely to have forward Alex Steen and defenseman Kris Russell back. Both players participated fully in a vigorous practice on Wednesday and reported no immediate repercussions.
"If they feel good tomorrow morning the way they do right now, then both guys will be ready to play," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. "This is the first really heavy go of it for both guys and both came through fine with no issues. If they feel good they'll be available."
Steen and Russell last played on Dec. 27 in a loss at Detroit. Steen scored a goal in that disappointing 3-2 outcome and began experiencing concussion-related issues the same night. The symptoms were thought to be initiated by a collision three days earlier against Dallas. Russell sustained a groin injury in the Red Wings game, caught in an awkward position when giant Detroit forward Johan Franzen fell on him.
Although Steen and Russell have been practicing in conventional jerseys â€" as opposed to the "no contact" variety â€" they had not had opportunities to push themselves in a full squad setting until Wednesday.
Steen, 27, had indicated he was close to returning for several days. The deliberate process has been challenging, but Wednesday was a good test.
"I haven't really had a chance to practice hard with the boys, the schedule has been hard on the guys and they've had a lot of optional skates," Steen said. "I felt like I needed to get that. I mean when it's an optional, you don't get the bumps. Five on five, it's a little more busy and a little more game-like action."
Steen has missed extended time with injures (broken wrist, high ankle sprain) in the past. But the concussion circumstances have been a different animal.
"This has been the weirdest one, the hardest and most frustrating," Steen said. "The good thing is the guys have been playing well and it's been fun to watch them. But it's frustrating sitting up in the box, that's for sure. You don't really have a timetable or anything like that to go off of."
Head injuries are different than other physical setbacks. A player might play with a sore wrist or ankle, endure a level of pain while the limbs are still progressing through the healing process. But you can't tape up the brain. It's not a pain threshold situation.
"The weirdest thing about the injury is you get to certain points where you think you can play, and then you get a little bit of symptoms here and there," Steen said. "It gets frustrating. But it's the only time I've been really, really, cautious with myself.
"The other injuries I've had, like I said, those are things you can kind of push through and deal with as you're playing. This is the total opposite."
The return of Steen and Russell are no small considerations for a Blues team trying to improve on the league's best home record (19-3-3) and keep pace with the NHL aristocrats. At the time he was injured, the well-rounded Steen was leading the club in goals. And still, after missing nine games, he is second in goals (13) and tied for third in points (24). He also is among the top plus-minus players in the game, carrying a plus-20.
"He's going right back with (David) Backes, there's no question," Hitchcock said. "To me Backes and Steen were a great pair and they're going back together again. (Steen) looks energized, quick. He's sharp mentally, he's in tune. He makes a huge difference on the power play now ... really helps that second unit.
"Look, he's a 20-minute player who can come back and play. We realize he's going to hit a wall physically after missing so many games. But geez, he gives us a big jump here, looking forward to it."
When Steen and Russell return, the Blues will have another movement impacted, the "Occupy The Press Box" movement. On the forward landscape, there will be a trickle down effect. Chris Stewart will remain with Backes and Steen. David Perron skated with T.J. Oshie and Patrik Beglund on Wednesday. Vladimir Sobotka, Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner remained a threesome.
But something or someone has to give somewhere. Initially, perhaps it will be Matt D'Agostini, with his nine goals, 17 points and plus-13 rating. The good news is, the Blues haven't been a position in recent years to move a creditable player down the chain, to have a legitimate competition.
"One of the things that you do when you get in this business is you decide whether you're a team of 23 or a team of 20 plus three," Hitchcock said. "And I think our players recognize we're a team of 23. So we're going to end up with 23 people and there's going to be some rotation. Some guys are going to play, some guys aren't some days, depends on the opposition.
"I know one thing, every time you think you're good to go you pick up a couple of injuries and you're back scrambling again. But we are a team of 23."
Russell's impact on the lineup is a little more clear. Hitchcock said the Blues have missed Russell's puck-moving abilities. "Anytime you can transition the puck out of your zone without having to pass it, it's a huge asset," Hitchcock explained. "Some guys can do it with patience, like (Nick) Lidstrom. Some can do it with strength and patience like (Niklas) Kronwall.
"Russell does it with ... he evades the first forechecker as well as anyone. He has learned to play as a small defenseman in the league. He evades that first forechecker and then skates it out of the zone for us. He does that six to eight times a game.
"We're really dangerous because we don't need to make any extra plays to get out of our zone; he can make it by himself."
Thus, when Russell is available, he will be in the starting lineup and, at least for now, Ian Cole will be in the press box. With five points and a plus-7 mark in 17 games, Cole has played well in Russell's stead, an opportunity abbreviated by a three-game suspension.
But Russell's skill set gives the Blues a different element. Cole, 22, is only 43 games into his NHL career. He is still developing his personality and refining his skill set.
"He's better, more engaged, more defined, getting better and better," Hitchcock said of Cole. "To be able to play in the league in a responsible position after 40-50 games is pretty impressive. But for me, it's all about improvement for Ian. We know there's going to be mistakes, but as long as he brings physicality, brings awareness on the ice and gets better every day at practice, he's a good asset to have.
"Is he our top six guy if Russell's healthy, no. But he certainly has helped us win hockey games since Russ has been out, so we're not afraid to play him at all. The big thing with Ian is we have to see the daily improvements that we've seen in the last two weeks."
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