Former Oilers Defender Makes Big Return

EDMONTON — They say absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Judging by their 4-5-1 record in their last 10 games, the St. Louis Blues have been missing one of their major summer acquisitions.

That acquisition was a certain Swedish defender who once played for the Edmonton Oilers—good old Philip Broberg.

Broberg has missed the last 12 games because of an injury he sustained in the Blues’ November 2nd game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now, all signs are pointing towards his return on Saturday.

The first step was taken today when the Blues took him off injured reserve and sent Corey Schueneman to the AHL.

Before his injury, he was performing incredibly well for the Blues. He’d found his offensive step, recording nine points in 12 games to kick off the season.

He was proving to be reliable in his own end, as indicated by his 19:34 average ice time per game. Broberg has skated less than 19 minutes in a game on three occasions; one of those games was the one in which he sustained his injury.

He played 18:27 and 16:26 the other two times, which is nothing to scoff at. It’s certainly miles ahead of the 11:37 he averaged last season with the Oilers.

According to Lou Korac of The Hockey News, Broberg participated fully at the Blues practice today. He took reps on the team’s second unit powerplay and skated on an even-strength pairing with Colton Parayko.

Fans of Broberg will have to wait until warmups to see if he is returning to action on Saturday.

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