Blues give Havlat, Zubrus a shot

The St. Louis Blues, hard-hit by injuries, have invited veterans Martin Havlat and Dainius Zubrus to try out. Unlike Havlat, however, Zubrus has never made his mark as a scorer, instead possessing a reputation as a big, sturdy forward with plus defensive awareness. The 6-foot-2, 209-pound forward was originally drafted by Ottawa in the first round (26th overall) of the 1999 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft and went on to be named to the 2000-01 NHL All-Rookie Team in his first season. He appeared in 40 games with the Devils last season, notching five goals and nine assists. He was in training camp with the Florida Panthers on a professional tryout deal earlier this fall, but was not signed to a contract at camp's conclusion. In 788 career regular-season games, he has 593 points. A veteran of 1243 games and 18 seasons, Zubrus has also spent time with the Montreal Canadiens, Washington Capitals and Buffalo Sabres. That has to happen by November 6.

So that's Havlat and Zubrus on PTOs, and Scott Gomez as a regular contributor at forward. Zubrus and Gomez were teammates of now Blues assistant GM Martin Brodeur who was New Jersey's longtime goaltender.

"He just asked me how I'm doing and if I'd be willing to come in and I said, 'Of course, '" Zubrus said.

The Blues play the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night.