Blues recall Welsh from Wolves (updated)

by Ryan Fay

Former Union forward Jeremy Welsh will make his debut with the St. Louis Blues tonight when they host the Winnipeg Jets at 8 p.m. ET.

Welsh
(photo credit: Chicago Wolves)

Welsh, who was recalled from the American Hockey League's Chicago Wolves on Sunday, will serve as the left wing on the fourth line.

The action will be his first in the NHL since the 2013-14 season when he was with the Vancouver Canucks.

“This caught me by surprise, but obviously I’m excited,” Welsh told the Blues Overtime Blog. “I’ve done the drive-up / call-up and play thing before. I’m not really nervous, but the adrenaline will be going with crowd and being back in the NHL. It’s really exciting.”

Prior to the call-up, Welsh had five goals and three assists in 11 games with the Wolves. The five goals are tied for second most on the team.

“He’s been a great player for [the Wolves],” Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said. “He’s been hard on the puck, he’s been determined, he’s been a weighty player, he's scored because of it, he goes into the hard areas offensively and defensively. He’s a guy that got rewarded for really good play down there. He’s been excellent every game.”

Welsh originally signed with the Blues organization in July 2014. He spent all of last season with the Wolves, collecting 20 goals and 21 assists in 75 games. He was re-signed over the summer.

The 27-year-old has a goal and an assist in 25 career NHL games between stints with Vancouver and Carolina.

Welsh is the second former Union player to get promoted to the NHL in the last few days. On Saturday, the Philadelphia Flyers recalled defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere from the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Gostisbehere played for the Flyers that night, and had an assist in a 3-2 overtime win at Carolina.

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