The St. Louis Blues are getting a boost to their lineup on Thursday night in Philadelphia (6 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network, 101 ESPN).
Jake Neighbours will return after missing 12 games with a right leg injury, and he’s back slightly ahead of schedule.
“The earliest we thought (he’d be back) was against the Islanders on Saturday,” Blues Head Coach Jim Montgomery said. “It could have been as much as the last game of the road trip.”
“It’s good news,” he added. “He was our leading goal scorer when he left the lineup. The character, how hard he is, all that stuff really matters. The little things make up real success in the locker room, on the bench and on the on ice.”
The Blues held an optional morning skate on Thursday, so the projected lineup below is based on Tuesday’s game – with adjustments Montgomery shared during his pregame media availability. Montgomery confirmed that Neighbours would be back on a line with Robert Thomas, Mathieu Joseph would be out, and Joel Hofer would start in goal.
If more changes are available during pregame warm-ups, those will be updated here.