Blues defenseman Torey Krug has a word with officials as they break up a small scuffle with the Coyotes’ Sean Durzi in the first period Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023, at Enterprise Center.
The Blues power play will look a little different this season.
Without primary quarterback Torey Krug available because of season-ending ankle surgery, the Blues will have to fill out their units without the certainty of Krug at the point on the top unit. The answer seems straightforward: Justin Faulk has done the job before, and Scott Perunovich counts running a power play as one of his specialties.
But there are other factors that could make the decision not as cut and dried for Blues coach Drew Bannister and his staff.
Whether it’s on the top unit or the second unit that he’s gotten familiar with in recent years, Faulk figures to collect power-play time in some capacity. He’s been a mainstay on the man advantage since he arrived in St. Louis but has scored just six total power-play goals in his five years — or as many as he scored during his final season in Carolina in 2018-19.
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“We know Faulker can run a power play,†Bannister said in an interview with the Post-Dispatch. “I like that he shoots the puck, and that was something that we harped on last year was getting more pucks to the net. Obviously, having more traffic, more of a stabilizing force around the net on the power play. He can shoot a puck.â€
When the Blues found success on the power play in the second half of the season, a lot of it could be attributed to Jake Neighbours playing at the net front and generating traffic. With Neighbours likely to reprise that role, it could make sense for the Blues to lean on the shoot-first Faulk.
Perunovich is the opposite of that. After 73 regular-season games, he’s still looking for his first NHL goal, in part because he passes up too many shooting opportunities. But when Perunovich is running a power play well, the puck moves quickly and he spies the passing lanes to open teammates.
“Where Scotty’s more cerebral, he likes to move the puck,†Bannister said. “There’s a difference between the two, but I also think, with Scotty, this isn’t something new that we haven’t talked to Scotty about; he has to be willing to shoot the puck more. That’s something we’re looking for early on when he’s in those situations, that not only is he distributing but he’s able to get more pucks to the net.â€
The thing holding back Perunovich could be his ability to even crack the Blues lineup on defense. With a potential six-man group of Colton Parayko, Nick Leddy, Philip Broberg, Ryan Suter, Matthew Kessel and Faulk, it’s possible Perunovich will have to fight to even get on the ice, let alone on the power play.
Even if Perunovich is not in the lineup, the Blues have plenty of veterans who have run a power play at some point of their careers. Suter (254 career power-play points) did so all of his career until last year in Dallas. Leddy (122) has experience from the Islanders. Even Parayko (43) slid into that spot a little bit last year.
But what about Broberg?
He’s the former No. 8 pick who the Blues signed as a restricted free agent this summer to a fat $4.58 million cap hit for two years. In Edmonton, Broberg wasn’t on the power play, but he did play on a unit for AHL affiliate Bakersfield.
With an entrance into the St. Louis organization like that, perhaps the Blues would want to see what he could do with offensive opportunity? Maybe not.
“I think he’s going to be somebody that, early on, we’re going to get him (penalty) killing, he’s going to be playing quality minutes in certain situations,†Bannister said. “But we have to find roles for everybody. We don’t have to double up on things. We’ll see how he comes in. I would that under the circumstances, he’s going to probably feel a little bit of pressure, too. We want to minimize that as a coaching staff and let him get his feet underneath him also.â€
Krug’s absence opens up an opportunity for another defenseman to make his way on to the 23-man roster, as well.
“Not having him is going to be tough, and we’re going to ask some guys to have to step up,†Bannister said. “A guy like Matthew Kessel, we believe, is going to take a step for us. We bring in Ryan Suter, who’s a veteran presence, has played a lot in this league, that’s going to be able to bring some of our young players along.
“Where does P.O. Joseph fit in? Where does Scotty Perunovich fit in? Where does Tyler Tucker fit in? I’m excited to see that competition, and they’re going to sort it out themselves.â€
