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Torey Krug

Torey Krug Still Not An Option For St. Louis

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The St. Louis Blues have staved off elimination for at least another few days, coming back to beat the Colorado Avalanche in overtime last night on a slapshot from Tyler Bozak. One of the more amazing statistics from that game is how heavily the Blues have leaned on just three defensemen, using Justin Faulk, Colton Parayko, and Nick Leddy in all situations. Marco Scandella and Robert Bortuzzo, two of the team’s more veteran options, played just 12:22 and 11:09 last night, while Niko Mikkola saw just over 16 minutes.

Part of that discrepancy between the top and bottom of the defense corps is because of Torey Krug’s absence, a player that would normally slide in with that top group and take on huge minutes. Krug hasn’t played since game three of the first round though, leaving the match against the Minnesota Wild with a lower-body injury after just six shifts.

Despite being back on the ice again today, Krug won’t be an option for the Blues tomorrow or in a potential game seven, according to Lou Korac of NHL.com. There is a chance he could return next series, though thinking that far ahead certainly isn’t really productive for St. Louis at this point. The team has a lot of work to do if they want to come back and take the series from Colorado, meaning Faulk, Parayko, and Leddy will need to carry the load a little longer.

There will be an eye on who actually enters the lineup behind them though. The team had been using seven defensemen and dressing both Calle Rosen and Scott Perunovich earlier in the series, the latter mostly for powerplay duty. With another do-or-die situation tomorrow night, head coach Craig Berube will have to decide which mix to use for the handful of minutes those depth spots are receiving.

West Notes: Second Round Schedule, Blues, Glendening

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Even with so many Game 7s on the calendar this weekend, we’re starting to receive some clarity on the upcoming Second Round schedule. NHL.com writer Lou Korac reports that it “sounds like” the Second Round matchup between the Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues will start Tuesday, May 17.

With that said, there’s a strong potential we could see an off day with no games on Monday. The only series that could begin on Monday without a team playing back-to-back is the matchups between the Florida Panthers and the winner of tonight’s Game 7 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning. With the league strictly using an alternating schedule of games during the First Round, it’s not outlandish to say that it’s either two games or no games on Monday night.

Marco Scandella Leaves Game With Lower-Body Injury

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Make that four regular defensemen out of the lineup for the St. Louis Blues. On the TBS broadcast of the game, it was revealed that Marco Scandella would not return to Game 4 of the First Round Series between the Blues and the Minnesota Wild with a lower-body injury.

Fortunately for the Blues, youngster Scott Perunovich was ready to go for today’s game after almost four months’ worth of inactivity, permitting them to dress seven defensemen. However, this now means the entirety of the Blues’ top three left defensemen are out of the lineup (Scandella, Torey Krug, Nick Leddy). Right-shot man Robert Bortuzzo is out of the lineup as well.

It’s an incredible turn of bad luck for the Blues, who had a strong start to Game 4 but trail in the series 2-1. Against a team like the Wild who can roll three lines, that many injuries on defense are almost a death sentence for the Blues.

They’ll need Perunovich, Calle Rosen, and Niko Mikkola to step up in a big way, in addition to whatever goalie is in net, in order for the Blues to come back in the series and complete what at this point would be a very large upset.

Injury Notes: Saros, Blues, Kings

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Nashville Predators star goaltender Juuse Saros will remain out of the lineup as the Predators look to avoid a sweep tomorrow, per head coach John Hynes. The team will likely continue to roll with Connor Ingram in the net with veteran David Rittich backing him up.

Hynes noted during his availability this morning that Saros is skating now as he recovers from a lower-body injury, but his activities are still limited. Ingram has performed admirably in a tough situation, putting up a .919 save percentage in two starts (three appearances). While Saros could likely amass somewhat better numbers, the Avalanche have hemmed the Predators at every turn and look to be the only team to sweep their way into the Second Round.

Latest On St. Louis Blues Defensemen

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After St. Louis Blues defenseman Torey Krug left last night’s game midway through the first period with a lower-body injury, Blues head coach Craig Berube said today that he expected Krug to be out for “some time” (link). The loss of Krug is yet another in a growing list of St. Louis defensemen who are out with injury, joining Nick Leddy, Robert Bortuzzo, and rookie Scott Perunovich. Krug has been an important piece for a deep Blues team this season, playing a pivotal role on their powerplay while averaging 20:33 in time-on-ice in the regular season. No timetable, beyond Berube’s comments, has been given.

Looking at those other three names, returns for Leddy, Bortuzzo, and Perunovich could be fairly soon. According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, who spoke with Berube, Perunovich is a possibility for Game Four against the Minnesota Wild on Sunday (link). Perunovich had been out since January 15th with a left wrist injury, which ultimately required surgery in March. The young defenseman’s regular season would end after just 19 NHL games, in which he tallied six assists.

A return for Leddy and Bortuzzo does not appear to be as imminent as that of Perunovich, however the pair did practice Saturday with St. Louis. Still, as Thomas reports, the team will have to wait and see on their status. Leddy, who played in Game One, missed games Two and Three against Minnesota with an upper-body injury. It’s unclear what exactly the nature of Leddy’s injury is, however he did take an awkward hit into the boards during Game One from the Wild’s Matt Boldy. Bortuzzo’s injury was more clear, having taken a puck to his face while attempting to block a shot during Game Two.

There was concern about Justin Faulk, as the defenseman did not practice with the team on Saturday. However, Thomas reports, Faulk’s absence was merely for rest, after playing heavy minutes in last night’s game. Faulk was not only one of the Blues’ best players this season, but one of the league’s best, recording 16 goals and 31 assists in 76 games along with a stellar plus-41 rating, all while averaging 23:12 time-on-ice.

Torey Krug Out With Upper-Body Injury

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The St. Louis Blues announced that defenseman Torey Krug will miss tonight’s game with an upper-body injury. Krug played in the Blues’ last game on Tuesday against the Boston Bruins, playing 17:53 in an overtime loss. It’s unclear how much time Krug will miss after tonight, if any, but for now the Blues will be without the veteran defenseman as they take on the Sharks in San Jose.

This is not Krug’s first battle with injury this season, as he has missed 15 games thus far. While the Blues have clinched a playoff spot, they are currently battling with the Minnesota Wild for second place in the Central Division, essentially battling for home-ice advantage in a first round series. Going without Krug, a reliable defender who has 40 points in 62 games this season, will not do St. Louis any favors in their battle in the standings, but it’s certainly better to have him out now rather than come playoffs.

Replacing him in the lineup tonight is defenseman Calle Rosen. The 28-year-old Rosen has played in just 14 games at the NHL level this year, however he’s been effective when he’s in the lineup, tallying two goals and five assists from the blueline. Rosen has played more regularly for the Springfield Thunderbirds of the AHL this season though, having four goals and 24 assists in 40 games at that level.

Torey Krug Expected To Return For St. Louis

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The St. Louis Blues are expected to get defenseman Torey Krug back into the lineup tonight, somewhat ironically against the Boston Bruins.

It’s Krug’s first game against Boston since he departed for St. Louis in free agency. While it’s his second season in St. Louis, the Blues didn’t meet the Bruins last year due to the COVID-restricted 2020-21 schedule. Krug last played on March 22nd, leaving the team’s game against Washington with an upper-body injury.

When in the lineup this season, he and Justin Faulk have exceeded expectations as a high-end first pairing in the NHL. Krug was extremely productive prior to his injury with 35 points in 57 games, and his +24 rating is second on the team behind Faulk’s +36.

With that, Nick Leddy, who had been playing with Faulk since his acquisition, will likely slide onto a pairing with Colton Parayko, giving the Blues a much more solidified top-four defense going into a likely playoff series against Minnesota.

Torey Krug Out Week-To-Week

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The St. Louis Blues made a considerable addition to their defense corps by bringing in Nick Leddy at the trade deadline, and it was pretty good timing. Today, the team has announced that Torey Krug will be out on a week-to-week basis after leaving Tuesday’s game against the Washington Capitals.

Krug, 30, ended up playing just 11 minutes in that game, easily his low mark of the season. In his second year in St. Louis, Krug is averaging close to 21 minutes a night and leads all Blues defensemen with 35 points. Taking that out of the lineup is no small thing, and opens up a huge opportunity for the newcomer. With Krug out, Leddy ended up seeing more than three minutes of powerplay time and finished with over 20 overall. That’s despite the team dressing seven defensemen, showing how much the team is going to rely on the former Detroit Red Wing over the last few weeks of the season.

The Blues ended up winning that game, but are still just 3-4-3 in their last ten and find themselves only barely ahead of the Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators in the Central Division. Even the Dallas Stars are only six points behind them, meaning St. Louis needs to start chugging in the right direction soon. Krug’s absence certainly won’t help that, even if they did add Leddy to the mix.

Of course, Scott Perunovich would have been useful in this case, but he too underwent surgery earlier this month and is still weeks away from a return.

Krug Placed In COVID Protocol; Schenn Returns To St. Louis

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The St. Louis Blues will be without the services of another important player, announcing that Torey Krug has been placed in the COVID protocol. The team has recalled Calle Rosen from the AHL, moving Dakota Joshua down in his place. Not only is Krug is unavailable for the time being, but so is Brayden Schenn, who is dealing with an upper-body injury and has returned to St. Louis for further evaluation.

It’s not all bad news for the Blues, who also are getting Ryan O’Reilly back after his own COVID quarantine. General manager Doug Armstrong explained that O’Reilly has rejoined the team on the road trip and is expected to be ready to play on Sunday. The captain’s return comes at the perfect time as the team deals with both injuries and COVID-related absences.

In fact, the Blues could be in a very tricky situation if anyone else is ruled out. Armstrong told reporters including Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic that given they have just 21 players now and could have to play short. St. Louis doesn’t have the cap space to recall anyone else, given they were already using almost all of the flexibility created by placing Oskar Sundqvist on injured reserve. If they do have to play short at any point, the team would be able to make an emergency recall afterward to bring up a player without his cap hit. That would only be until the injured players are ready to return, but would at least keep them from icing a shortened roster.

Losing Krug and Schenn at the same though is a brutal hit for the team given how important they are. Krug averages nearly 21 minutes of ice time and has eight points in his first nine games, while Schenn had been carrying a big part of the load at center with O’Reilly out. The 30-year-old forward’s six points in nine games trails several others, but he is still a huge part of their game plan at both ends of the rink.

West Notes: Karlsson, Lehner, Parayko, Walker

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The Sharks will be without defenseman Erik Karlsson for at least the next two games, notes Jon Williams of NBC Sports Bay Area.  The veteran is dealing with another groin injury though it’s not believed to be related to his previous groin injuries.  Nevertheless, head coach Bob Boughner indicated yesterday to reporters, including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News, that Karlsson’s injury is a nagging one that he had been playing through.  However, with just four assists in 13 games this season, it’s certainly fair to wonder if the veteran would be better served by sitting for a little while and trying to come back at full strength.  With a record-setting $11.5MM AAV, San Jose needs much more offense than they’ve received from Karlsson thus far and perhaps this groin issue is at least partially to blame.

Elsewhere in the West Division:

  • Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner isn’t expected to travel with the team for this weekend’s outdoor game at Lake Tahoe, reports David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal (Twitter link). However, he is expected to return to the Vegas lineup sooner than later.  Lehner last played on February 7th and has been battling an upper-body injury.  Marc-Andre Fleury has been quite strong in his absence as he tries to retake his former number one role.
  • While the Blues are getting Marco Scandella and Torey Krug back tonight from their respective upper-body injuries, it’s not all good news for their back end as Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch relays that Colton Parayko’s nagging injury is enough to keep him out of the lineup. The 27-year-old was expected to have a big season following the departure of Alex Pietrangelo but has managed just a goal and seven assists through 16 games and was only able to play 15 minutes on Monday against Arizona.
  • The Kings are close to welcoming back Sean Walker to their lineup as Lisa Dillman of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the defenseman is expected to play at some point on their six-game road trip. The 26-year-old has missed the last six games after undergoing nasal surgery after he took a slapshot to the face in late-January.

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