St. Louis Blues Trim Training Camp Roster by Six Players

The St. Louis Blues made their first round of cuts on Tuesday and freed up some needed ice space, assigning forwards Samuel Blais, Jaedon Descheneau, and C.J. Yakimowicz, defensemen Thomas Vannelli and Dmitrii Sergeev to their respective CHL junior teams. Defenseman Santeri Saari was assigned to his team in Finland.

Vannelli and Saari were the only two players among the six to see action during the preseason. Vannelli was in the lineup against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday, collecting two assists with a minus-1 rating. Saari had no points on Monday against the Dallas Stars but had a minus-2 rating.

With this round of cuts, there are four players left in camp who played in juniors during 2013-14. 2014 first-rounder Robby Fabbri and second-rounder Ivan Barbashev are the only two who are slated to return to juniors this year, as forwards Zach Pochiro and Ryan Tesink are expected to graduate to the American minors this year. Petteri Lindbohm, a 21-year-old defenseman who is expected to play in Finland this year, also remains on the roster.

The Blues’ training camp roster still includes 53 players, though six of those players are not actually under contract with the Blues and are present in camp either as professional tryouts or because of their status as members of the Chicago Wolves, the Blues’ AHL affiliate.