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Longtime Blues radio play-by-play broadcaster Chris Kerber is expected to be back to work Saturday after a tough stretch, in which he took several days off following the recent death of his father, Lou Kerber. He was 82.

He “raised nine of us and has 20 grandkids,� said Kerber, who is the second-oldest. Kerber was 22 when his mom died in 1993, “and Dad kept the family tight and close. He was a spectacular man.�

Kerber had a special moment with his father in 2019, when he was able to share the Stanley Cup with him after the Blues won it that summer.

“We had an amazing couple hours,� he said.

Kerber was instrumental in finding the announcers to fill in for him this week, one a broadcaster early in his career and the other an accomplished veteran.

Joe Benson, who calls games of the Kansas City Mavericks of the minor league ECHL, took over Tuesday for the Blues’ 7-2 victory at home over Seattle. Then Chuck Kaiton did so Thursday for a contest the Blues won 5-2.

Kaiton spent nearly four decades calling NHL games for the Hartford/Carolina franchise and in 2004 received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award, presented annually by the Hockey Hall of Fame for excellence in broadcasting the sport.

Kerber is glad Benson had the opportunity because, while still a minor-league announcer, Kerber once was given a chance to call NHL action in Philadelphia and used that tape to help land his current job and return to his hometown.

“The Blues have always let me pay that forward, and hopefully the seven goals scored Tuesday night ... helps Joe kick open a door, too,� Kerber said.

Meanwhile, Kaiton was calling NHL games for Hartford when Kerber still was in the minors, at nearby Springfield, Massachusetts. Many years later, Kaiton had a somewhat messy departure from the team, which now was in Raleigh, North Carolina, in what was termed a salary dispute. That was after the 2018 season.

“Chuck was always great to me,� Kerber said. “He didn’t get what I feel was a deserved sendoff ... and I’m thrilled he was willing and able to step in. It’s a treat to have a Hall of Famer take the reins for a game.�

Kaiton, 73, was thankful for the opportunity.

“I really appreciated Chris reaching out and asking me to do it,� he told the Raleigh News & Observer before the game. “It’s very exciting to me. Let’s face it — even though I’m in my 70s, I obviously wish I was still working. Some days I do, some days I don’t, depending on the travel schedule, but I do miss the people. It’s going to be an opportunity to see a lot of people I haven’t seen in a long time who I really like.�

Kerber will be ready to return Saturday, when the Blues entertain Los Angeles at 7 p.m. in a game to be broadcast on WXOS (101.1 FM), after having a lot of time this week to reflect. Included in those thoughts is gratitude for being hired for the radio post by then-Blues vice president Jim Woodcock.

“I’ve always thanked him for bringing me home and giving me the chance to be the broadcaster for the Blues,� Kerber said. “What I realized this past week that was more important was that he gave me the chance to be with dad and family for the last 25 years, and there aren’t enough thank-yous to cover that.�

Television times

On the TV broadcasting front for the Blues, Tom Ackerman filled in for Alexa Datt on Thursday night as host of the pregame, postgame and between-periods reports for FanDuel Sports Network. A spokesperson for FDSN said Datt, who had been in Florida to broadcast Cardinals games earlier in the week, was ill.

• Ratings for Saturday’s Blues game — the first one in the team’s local TV production lineup to be shown over the air in 16 years — were not yet available as of Thursday. That contest was carried on KMOV (Channel 4) and Matrix Midwest (Channel 32).