St. Louis Blues Reassign Forward Ty Rattie to AHL Chicago
Ty Rattie made significant contributions this time around for the St. Louis Blues, but he apparently hasn’t built up enough caché to earn a regular lineup spot yet.
In a move that most expected upon forward Jaden Schwartz‘s return, the St. Louis Blues reassigned rookie forward Ty Rattie to the AHL Chicago Wolves on Wednesday afternoon. That could be a sign that Schwartz will be ready to return on Thursday when the Blues face the San Jose Sharks, though with the team now on a three-game homestand, one extra forward (most likely Ryan Reaves) seems to be sufficient should an injury occur during practice or pregame warmups.
The 22-year-old Rattie, who was a healthy scratch on Tuesday night in Nashville, still just hasn’t built up enough of a reputation to become one of the Blues’ primary 12 forwards at full health, and since he’s still at a relatively early stage of his career, GM Doug Armstrong wants him developing at the AHL level if he’s not going to be a regular with the Blues. For what it’s worth, though, Rattie’s most recent call-up resulted in his most productive NHL stint through three years with the Blues.
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Rattie, who played in six games from January 12-24, scored three goals (including his first in the NHL, which came on the 12th against New Jersey) and had a plus-3 rating. Rattie has been a prolific scorer at the AHL level since his debut in 2013, but he had failed to score during his first 18 NHL games, which came sporadically from April of 2014 to November of 2015. Even though it was a very small sample size, Rattie’s newfound productivity as a scorer during the three weeks he just spent with the Blues should inspire some confidence from the front office that he’ll eventually develop into a reliable top-12 forward.
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For now, though, it’s off to the American Hockey League for Rattie, and it may be difficult for him to earn another shot in the NHL this year with Magnus Paajarvi healthy and Schwartz and Steve Ott scheduled to return within the next month or so. If the Blues continue to experience offensive issues, however–they’ve scored just four goals in their past four games–perhaps they’d call upon Rattie due to the offensive talent that he recently showed off.