ST. LOUIS — St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker will miss the start of the season after undergoing a successful arthroscopic procedure on his right knee Wednesday morning. The team said the 26-year-old will be re-evaluated in six weeks, sidelining him until at least mid-November.
Tucker was injured in practice on Sept. 20 and has not been on the ice since. Blues general manager Alexander Steen said Monday that Tucker was seeking a second opinion, which led to the decision for surgery. Tucker played in 69 regular-season games last season with 17 points (three goals, 14 assists) and has 30 points (eight goals, 22 assists) in 159 career regular-season games.
The injury further thins St. Louis on the blue line alongside Logan Mailloux, who had surgery on his right hand Sunday and will be re-evaluated in at least eight weeks. To fill the void, the Blues recalled 2024 first-round pick Adam Jiricek from Springfield of the American Hockey League and claimed defenseman Justin Barron off waivers from the Nashville Predators.
Jiricek could make his NHL debut when St. Louis opens the season Friday against the Dallas Stars. "Yeah, we've discussed that, but at the end of the day this is going to be a coaching decision and then we'll continue to have conversations on a daily basis on where he's at," Steen said of Jiricek. "Just him playing his game. What we like about him is he's excited to play hockey. I love the fact that he brings the same excitement to both the offensive side and the play without the puck. He's very eager to learn." Steen added Jiricek was "growing" every day from rookie camp and had "a tremendous camp."