The Blues announced Friday that they’ve reassigned defenseman Hunter Skinner to the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds. No corresponding move was announced, leaving them with an open roster spot.
Skinner, 24, replaced the struggling Logan Mailloux on the roster earlier this month after clearing waivers to begin the campaign. A fourth-round pick of the Rangers in 2019, he was acquired as part of the 2023 trade that sent Niko Mikkola and Vladimir Tarasenko to New York. His summons from Springfield on Nov. 9 marked his first-ever stint on an NHL roster.
The 6’3″, 195-lb righty didn’t get much of a chance in the lineup, though. Without Mailloux in the picture, the Blues have rolled with a third pairing of Matthew Kessel and Tyler Tucker for most of the month. That left Skinner relegated to the press box aside from a 6-5 shootout loss to the Flyers on Nov. 14 that served as his NHL debut. The Michigan native recorded a +1 rating, one shot attempt, one block, and four hits in 10:45 of ice time. The Blues were outshot 5-4 and outchanced 4-3 in Skinner’s 5-on-5 minutes, per Natural Stat Trick.
While the Blues’ top six defenders have been healthy all season long, it’s still peculiar to see them shed a healthy extra from the roster in the middle of a lengthy road trip. That road trip, though, is currently in New York and isn’t far away at all from the Thunderbirds’ Massachusetts base. The T-Birds have a light schedule – they’re in action at home tonight and don’t play again until next weekend – so the demotion could just be for Skinner to get his game legs fresh tonight before he or someone else rejoins St. Louis’ roster tomorrow as injury insurance.
Now in his sixth professional season, Skinner has a goal and an assist with a -6 rating in 11 appearances for Springfield this year. He’s coming off a career year across the board in 2024-25, when he recorded an 8-15–23 scoring line and a +2 rating in 71 games.