ST. LOUIS(AP) -- St. Louis captain Eric Brewer made a surprise
return to the Blues' lineup Thursday night against the Phoenix
Coyotes.
The defenseman had not played since Dec. 11 after having back
surgery twice to repair a sciatic nerve that at one point was
thought to be career threatening. He also had minor knee surgery
last month.
"When I get to a point where I'm wondering why I'm just
practicing, then I'll play," Brewer said earlier this week. "...
We're getting close.
"I feel better. I'm starting to get more of my feet under me."
The 30-year-old Brewer has been skating with the Blues regularly
since the team returned from its trip to Sweden on Oct. 5. He
missed 58 games a season ago and 68 total, including the first
10 games this season. Brewer was cleared to play by his doctor
in Los Angeles.
"It was all up to Brew ... he set today as his target, and the
doctors cleared him," Blues president John Davidson said. "He's
been able to practice hard for some time now, and he wants to
get back in there. It's not going to be easy, but we've got to
get him back to speed."
Brewer is in the third year of a four-year, $17 million contract
signed in 2007. He had a goal and five assists in 28 games last
season.
"Here's a guy that was worried about his career," Davidson said.
"He took the full time to rehab properly and now he's in a
position where he feels 100 percent. A lot of athletes retire
because of back injuries. It's not a fun issue. This injury
could have been debilitating. But here it is the end of October
and he's ready to go. I've got to give him credit."
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