For the first time since Oct. 13, Andy McDonald will be in uniform for the Blues tonight.
McDonald missed 51 games with a concussion, but he was activated from the injured-reserve list this morning and says he's ready to go.
"I'm excited," McDonald said. "It's been kind of a tough recovery and obviously a long time. I'm excited that this day is finally here and I'm looking forward to tonight."
Much has gone well for the Blues since McDonald last suited up. It was the third game of the season when he was concussed against Dallas, a game the Blues lost 3-2 to the Stars, dropping their early record to 1-2.
Four months later, the team enters tonight's game against San Jose with a record of 33-14-7 and in fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
"That's really exciting," McDonald said. "Everybody from the players to the management to the city is really excited about this team. It was a hard thing watching ... the team having so much success and you want to be out there and be a part of it. Unfortunately I've missed a large chunk of the season, but hopefully we've got a large part left to play. I'm really looking forward to being a part of it."
Blues coach Ken Hitchcock had been saying for weeks that until he saw the whites of McDonald's eyes, he wouldn't be counting on him. Well, that day has come.
"He looks like a hell of a player, but I don't know him that well from coaching against him," Hitchcock said. "I knew how dynamic he was on the power play before. But I'm curious, I'm curious because he looks so good at practice. Can you carry that over when you're playing against different sweaters right off the bat.
"He's been out a long time, I'm sure he's going to be excited to play, I know the players are really excited to have him back in. It's like getting a free player. This is like adding a free agent at the trading deadline ... to get a guy like Andy right now. We're hopeful that he gets his feet wet pretty quickly."
McDonald is expected to play left wing on a line with Patrik Berglund in the middle. The Blues have a few players battling the flu, so it's not yet known how the rest of the lineup will shake out, but it will likely be Jamie Langenbrunner playing right wing on that line.
As Hitchcock has mentioned in the past when injured players return to the lineup, there's no such thing as easing them back in. McDonald will be on the power play, joining Berglund and Chris Stewart, a group that saw some time together last season.
"We're not having reservations about how much he's playing, or whatever," Hitchcock said. "We'll just play him a regular shift, play him on the power play and see how he looks."
A year ago, McDonald missed two months with a concussion, and when he returned, he posted 33 points (12 goals, 21 assists) in the final 33 games of the regular season.
"I'm not looking at point totals," McDonald said. "It's more about helping the team win. Obviously I'm an offensive guy and that's where I need to chip in. I want to help this team where I can and hopefully that will be tonight."
The news wasn't completely good on the concussion front today. Matt D'Agostini, who has missed two games with symptoms, was placed on IR.
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TONIGHT'S LINEUP
Forwards
David Perron-David Backes-T.J. Oshie
Andy McDonald-Patrik Berglund-Jamie Langenbrunner
Chris Porter-Vladimir Sobotka-Chris Stewart
B.J. Crombeen-Scott Nichol-Ryan Reaves
Defensemen
Carlo Colaiacovo-Alex Pietrangelo
Barret Jackman-Kevin Shattenkirk
Kris Russell/Ian Cole-Roman Polak
Goalie
Jaroslav Halak
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VIEW FROM ABOVE
The Blues are 2-0 against San Jose this season, winning 4-2 in October and 1-0 in December.
Going into the third meeting, San Jose has a pretty good scouting report on the Blues. The Sharks were in town last night and head coach Todd McLellan watched the Blues' 3-2 overtime win over Colorado from the press box.
"They play a style night after night that allows them to win," McLellan said today. "We saw it again last night. Their team commitment to defense. They give up very very little. We talk about our number (of goals needed) being three; their number can be two and they can still win.
"I heard 'Hitch' talk about checking for chances. That's where most of their opportunities come from. The power play last night looked dangerous ... they've got it going. They're a team right now that believes they can win. When you have that in your locker room, it's a powerful thing."
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SPECIALS TEAMS WILL BE KEY
In the December meeting between the Blues and San Jose, the credit for the Blues' 1-0 win went to their penalty-killing unit, which erased all six Sharks' power plays.
Considering the recent trends, Hitchcock is praying for a night like that. The Blues' PK has allowed at least one goal in seven of its last eight games, while the Sharks' power play has converted eight of 17 opportunities in its five games.
"When you've got a power play that's 47 percent in its last five games, you want to keep them off the power play," Hitchcock said. "The game that we won here, we were on the slippery slope because we gave them six minors. We killed them off, but I don't think we'll get the opportunity to kill that many minor penalties again. We've got to keep the game 5-on-5."
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ODDS & ENDS
- David Perron has five goals in his last three games, scoring twice in Ottawa Tuesday and twice last night against Colorado. Last night marked the ninth time in Perron's career that he has netted two goals in a game, and the Blues are 8-0-1 in those games.
- Blues goaltender Jaroslav Halak has a seven-game winning streak at Scottrade Center and is 10-0-1 since his last regulation loss on home ice (3-2 to L.A., Nov. 22). For the season, Halak is 13-2-2 with a 1.69 goals-against average and a .931 save-percentage at home.
- Jason Arnott (shoulder) skated this morning but will not be in the lineup tonight. His status for Tuesday's game in Columbus remains unknown.
