The St. Louis Blues made a bold roster move on Monday. Logan Mailloux activated off injured reserve after a broken hand sidelined him since late September. Adam Jiricek and Theo Lindstein were assigned to the Springfield team in the American Hockey League. This clears the ice for Mailloux to make his season debut Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings. It is a win for the Blues who needed their defense back at full strength. The club also recalled veteran Calle Rosen to fill the spot left by the young prospects. Per The Hockey News, the 23-year-old defenseman missed the first 17 games of the 2026-27 campaign. His return fixes a hole that opened up during a preseason fight with Chicago Blackhawks forward Cole Smith. Mailloux was lucky the injury only affected his hand and not his leg or back. He skated well during practice and looked ready to play right away.
A Quick Recovery From a Bad Hit
Mailloux knew something was wrong the moment he got to the penalty box during that preseason game. He had to show up and do something after seeing teammate Philip Broberg go down in a collision. “I wasn’t a huge fan of the hit,” Mailloux said. “It’s not ideal seeing one of your teammates go down in a preseason game like that. I just had to show up and kind of do something.” The injury derailed a solid training camp where he looked like a key player. He finished last season with 13 points in 67 games. Now he is back to help the blue line. He was paired with Broberg again on Monday. The two developed terrific chemistry last year and the team wants them back together. “It’s been, what, six weeks? I was lucky enough that it was just my hand, so I was able to skate and stuff for a while. I feel good,” Mailloux said. His return gives the Blues six defensemen who have played the best so far this year.
Young Prospects Get More Ice Time
Blues coach Jim Montgomery sees this as a perfect situation for everyone involved. The team has six defensemen who have performed well, so sending two down allows them to get more minutes in the AHL. “It gives us a situation where the six D so far this year have been the guys that have played the best,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. Adam Jiricek played in all 17 games this season and recorded one goal and three points. He averaged 15 minutes and 51 seconds of ice time. Sending him down is not a demotion but a chance to develop further. Jiricek blew past expectations by making the opening-night roster. Theo Lindstein also gets a chance to play more with the Springfield team. Montgomery called both players big parts of the future. “Those two are both big parts of our future and it’s a matter of when, not if,” Montgomery said. The move shows the Blues are confident in their depth. They are ready to fight for a playoff spot with Mailloux back in the lineup. On Tuesday, the Detroit Red Wings will be hosted by the Blues as they take the ice.
