Blues’ Robert Thomas out day-to-day with upper-body injury

A struggling team’s best player is going to be out of action.

St. Louis Blues reporter Lou Korac announced that forward Robert Thomas is not going to be in the lineup on Thursday night, when the Blues host the San Jose Sharks, and is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

The injury stems from an incident that happened on Tuesday night against the Washington Capitals. Prior to the halfway mark of the third period, Thomas attempted to run a pick play on Capitals forward Pierre-Luc Dubois. Dubois took exception to the action and decided to wrestle the former London Knight down to the ice, leading to Thomas hitting his head on contact.

Dubois was handed a match penalty for intent to injure, while Thomas had to be helped off the ice and didn’t return to the game.

The Blues went on to win 3-0. Afterwards, Blues head coach Jim Montgomery stated that Thomas was okay following the incident.

“He’s fine, he passed protocol. He’s healthy,” Montgomery said postgame.

Obviously, Montgomery’s words were incorrect.

Thomas has already missed a few games this season. He was out of action for a couple games after suffering an upper-body injury in October, with a lower-body injury in January leading the 26-year-old to be placed on injured reserve. Then, after the Olympics, he was granted a leave of absence.

In the 53 games he has played, Thomas has scored 16 goals and recorded 30 assists for 46 points, leading the Blues in helpers and overall scoring. It’s a little off the pace that led to the Aurora, Ont. native posting back-to-back 80-point seasons. He has also registered a plus/minus of +14 while averaging almost 19 minutes of ice time per game.

The Blues (29-30-11) are seventh in the Central Division, eight points back of a Wild Card spot.