In an interesting move, considering his team is locked in a 2-2 playoff series, the St. Louis Blues have recalled Petteri Lindbohm from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. Lindbohm played just yesterday in the Wolves’ 5-1 victory over the Charlotte Checkers, and was set to play tonight in game 5. Instead, he’ll come up as an insurance policy for the Blues as they start their series with the Nashville Predators.
The normal six defensemen were all present at practice this morning, with Robert Bortuzzo taking his spot next to Carl Gunnarsson on the third pairing. Interestingly, the Blues already had Tommy Vannelli up with the team skating as a Black Ace, but perhaps they don’t consider him ready enough to step into a role should someone get injured and have returned him to the AHL. Jordan Schmaltz, who played one game for the Blues in the first round, is staying down with the Wolves for their playoff run.
The Blues will begin the series at home tonight against the Predators, after both sides overcame long odds to emerge from round one. The Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild were the top two teams in the Western Conference this year and were defeated in quick fashion showing that nothing is secure in the NHL playoffs. Now, two teams that struggled at times this season will face off in what should be an exceptional series.