Blues defenseman Jeff Woywitka is expected to miss 4-6 weeks with a cracked bone in his right foot. Woywitka suffered the injury blocking a shot in Friday’s 9-4 win over Atlanta.

Suddenly, the competition on the blue-line has gone from “You have to play well to earn a job” to “Do you have a pair of skates?”

Pre-training camp lineup:

1. Eric Brewer

2. Barret Jackman

3. Jay McKee

4. Erik Johnson

5. Steve Wagner

6. Jeff Woywitka

7. Roman Polak

8. Jonas Junland

9. Alex Pietrangelo

10. Mike Weaver

Now, Pientrangelo or Weaver could be the sixth d-man on the roster on opening night, Oct. 10. Here’s a look:

1. Brewer

2. Jackman

3. McKee

4. Wagner

5. Polak

6. Pietrangelo

7. Weaver

Injuries: Johnson (knee), Junland (shoulder, won’t be cleared for physical contact for at least 1 more week) and Woywitka (foot, out 4-6 weeks).

All three defensemen the Blues have lost to injury, especially Johnson, were players the team hoped could provide offense. Wagner and Pietrangelo are now the only guys who bring that element in their game. I’ll have more on the Blues’ defensive situation in my blog tonight and perhaps in Tuesday’s Post-Dispatch.

Here’s the lineup for tonight’s game in Toronto . . .

Tkachuk-Oshie-Backes

Stempniak-McDonald-Boyes 

Kariya-Berglund-Regier

Winchester-McClement-Janssen

I believe these are the six d-men playing tonight: Brewer, Weaver, Jackman, McKee, Polak and Pietrangelo

Manny Legace in goal.

JR