Fantasy Fallout: St. Louis W Alexander Steen Sings the Injury Blues

The St. Louis Blues announced Sunday that forward Alexander Steen will be out for "at least a month" with an upper-body injury suffered in Saturday's win over Arizona. Here's a look at the fantasy implications of Steen's impending stay on the sidelines:

Daily Fantasy

Steen, whose 47 points ranked close behind Vladimir Tarasenko's team-leading 51, was a fairly reliable option at his upper mid-range price on most DFS sites. With 15 multi-point efforts in 2015-16, he offered explosive tournament play potential.

His 2.6 shots per game and established special teams role (Steen's 17 power play assists tie him for fifth overall in the NHL) provided a level of safety for cash games.

The Blues rank 22nd with 2.46 goals per game, so Steen's absence will be felt by a team already in need of offense. St. Louis has been snakebitten by injuries all season, with players like C Paul Stastny, G Jake Allen, D Kevin Shattenkirk and W Jaden Schwartz having missed significant time. D Alex Pietrangelo has been sidelined since February 6, with a knee injury.

Among healthy Blues, Schwartz represents a cheaper alternative to Steen for DFS purposes. After suffering a broken ankle in October, Schwartz has four goals and an assist in five games since a February return to the lineup.

Overall, he has nine points in 12 games on the season, and looks to be in the same form that saw him register 63 points in 75 games in 2014-15. None of his points this season have come via the power play; Steen's absence may free up a prime role for him with the man advantage.

Redraft Fantasy Leagues

Assuming Steen misses exactly one month and returns in time for St. Louis' March 22 matchup in San Jose, he'd be in line to play in the team's final nine games of the season. An exact timetable is obviously tough to pin down at this time, though - Steen should be stashed in an injured reserve slot if possible, until a more definitive return date is announced.

If it emerges that Steen will miss an extra week or more, he's a candidate to be cut, as the regular season ends April 9.

Among Blues skaters, forwards Schwartz and Stastny, both highly-owned in the majority of leagues, should see increased opportunities with Steen out of the lineup.

Waiver Wire Targets

• St. Louis C Robby Fabbri, who, in his rookie season, has 14 goals and 12 assists in 55 games. Very lightly owned in standard fantasy leagues, Fabbri has been playing well of late, with eight points in nine February games. He's the most realistically-available Blues forward with a high fantasy ceiling.

• Arizona Coyotes W Anthony Duclair - as detailed in Sunday's edition of Waiver Watch - also has eight points in February, and, like Fabbri, should be widely available.

• Toronto Maple Leafs C/W Mark Arcobello, who has three goals, an assist and 21 shots in six games since being recalled from the AHL. His time with the team may be limited if Toronto gets healthier, but he's been productive and enjoys a steady dose of first-unit power-play time.