Defense 1st still?

[MissouriMook]

Quick breakouts are more closely tied to how quickly you think the game and how well you can make a pass than it is about skating in the backend. Quick passes will always beat quick skaters.

Not disagreeing with your point in general, but I feel like this organization values defensemen who can skate the puck out of the zone (as a part of the 5 man unit philosophy) more than people may realize. Quick outlet passing is general more of a prerequisite for a counter attack team that prefers to create offense off the rush.

 

[Celtic Note]

Not disagreeing with your point in general, but I feel like this organization values defensemen who can skate the puck out of the zone (as a part of the 5 man unit philosophy) more than people may realize. Quick outlet passing is general more of a prerequisite for a counter attack team that prefers to create offense off the rush.

In the playoffs when you are being forechecked hard, quick passes matter regardless of your approach. Ask any number of the teams that tried to skate it in the defensive zone, against us, how that faired during our Cup run.

In the regular season when there is time and space? Sure skating matters a lot more.

But, in general skating as a defenseman is valuable to evade a forechecker and make a quick pass. And as constructed, our forward group is not well positioned to play a quick strike offensive game, which I don’t think is a great strategy in the playoffs anyway.

 

[ItsOnlytheRiver]

Could be better idk.

I still would hold on our 2021 1st round pick.

I mean, we should probably hold on to those for a couple years anyway. Gotta restock.

 

[Ted Hoffman]

It will be interesting to see what the lineup looks like at the start of the season. Moves can still be made. what if they ended up with:

Krug Parayko
Scandella Faulk
Mikkola Gunner

I think that lineup would be good enough defensively. I also think Husso will be a lot better this year than most people think.

I would be (more) nervous. We already know the defensive concerns with Krug and Faulk; those pairings presume Parayko and Scandella will each be able to pick up any slack. If Mikkola is going to come in and land a regular starting spot after 5 NHL games, Gunnarsson isn't the guy I'd pair him with. If your 7 is Bortuzzo, ... OK, but then why him in the 7-spot and not Mikkola there so he can spell guys as needed? If it's not Bortuzzo in the 7, then I get even more concerned because that's not going to be [better not be] Perunovich, I don't know that I want Reinke there (it wouldn't be the worst choice, but I still wouldn't be comfortable about it), and anyone else we currently have would give me serious heartburn.

 

[kimzey59]

I would be (more) nervous. We already know the defensive concerns with Krug and Faulk; those pairings presume Parayko and Scandella will each be able to pick up any slack. If Mikkola is going to come in and land a regular starting spot after 5 NHL games, Gunnarsson isn't the guy I'd pair him with. If your 7 is Bortuzzo, ... OK, but then why him in the 7-spot and not Mikkola there so he can spell guys as needed? If it's not Bortuzzo in the 7, then I get even more concerned because that's not going to be [better not be] Perunovich, I don't know that I want Reinke there (it wouldn't be the worst choice, but I still wouldn't be comfortable about it), and anyone else we currently have would give me serious heartburn.

I think you're forgetting about Santini.

 

[Ted Hoffman]

I think you're forgetting about Santini.

Oh, yeah. Right. See "anyone else we currently have would give me serious heartburn."

I know, I know - he's got NHL experience. He couldn't hold a spot on a lousy Devils team. He wasn't used when Nashville needed someone to fill a role. He's fairly limited in what he's going to bring to the table. I think he'll be great at Springfield; IMO if he's having to fill a spot for us in St. Louis, we've got problems.

 

[TK 421]

Krug Parayko
Mikkola Faulk
Scandella Bortuzzo
Gunnarson

1st Pair - Krug and Parayko complement each other pretty well at first glance and this seems like a natural fit to me. I think Parayko functions best with an assertive partner to take lead in terms of decision making and Krug is certainly that.

2nd Pair- I put Mikkola with Faulk specifically so I could put Scandella with Bortuzzo on the 3rd. Mikkola will be a great defensive foil for Faulk and has the skating to present as a pass option for Faulk getting out of the zone. He's smart and can read plays well to cover Faulk defensively.

3rd Pair- Scandella brings better production potential than Mikkola would to this pairing while giving the team an extremely physical tandem as well. This pair could eat a lot of Dzone starts essentially giving the team a poor mans shut down pair.

I don't consider Scandella and Mikkola to be interchangeable but for the purposes of this exercise I could easily see them flipped in this set up due to playing a similar style and providing similar benefits to their defense partner.

Duct Tape Gunnarson is your 7th.

I tried to balance these pairings as much as possible and obviously I have Dunn being traded before the season starts. Due to handedness issues created by having to shelter two weaker defensive players amongst the top 4 I couldn't find a way to run a pure shut down pairing of Mikkola/Parayko like I wanted so I opted for balanced pairings that could be rolled like the forward group is rather than deployed situationally like we had with recent groups.

 

[simon IC]

Krug Parayko
Mikkola Faulk
Scandella Bortuzzo
Gunnarson

1st Pair - Krug and Parayko complement each other pretty well at first glance and this seems like a natural fit to me. I think Parayko functions best with an assertive partner to take lead in terms of decision making and Krug is certainly that.

2nd Pair- I put Mikkola with Faulk specifically so I could put Scandella with Bortuzzo on the 3rd. Mikkola will be a great defensive foil for Faulk and has the skating to present as a pass option for Faulk getting out of the zone. He's smart and can read plays well to cover Faulk defensively.

3rd Pair- Scandella brings better production potential than Mikkola would to this pairing while giving the team an extremely physical tandem as well. This pair could eat a lot of Dzone starts essentially giving the team a poor mans shut down pair.

I don't consider Scandella and Mikkola to be interchangeable but for the purposes of this exercise I could easily see them flipped in this set up due to playing a similar style and providing similar benefits to their defense partner.

Duct Tape Gunnarson is your 7th.

I tried to balance these pairings as much as possible and obviously I have Dunn being traded before the season starts. Due to handedness issues created by having to shelter two weaker defensive players amongst the top 4 I couldn't find a way to run a pure shut down pairing of Mikkola/Parayko like I wanted so I opted for balanced pairings that could be rolled like the forward group is rather than deployed situationally like we had with recent groups.

I like what you have done here, and this is what I would try as well. I think it is the best way to deal with a bad situation. The most important thing is how that first pairing turns out. I get the feeling Krug-Parayko will either be really good, or really bad.

 

[TK 421]

I like what you have done here, and this is what I would try as well. I think it is the best way to deal with a bad situation. The most important thing is how that first pairing turns out. I get the feeling Krug-Parayko will either be really good, or really bad.

Yeah that's a curious one simon, I'll be honest I have no idea how that will work out but I saw some Boston fans suggest Parayko would be the best fit for Krug to shine by covering for his deficiencies. So I'm really just going off that and the potential that Torey has to drag guys into the fight. Bergeron had glowing things to say about Torey and we know he's a wolverine on skates so I see some possibility that his assertive nature could be a perfect fit for Parayko as well. Fingers crossed, hoping for good things from that duo.

Plus I really want to see a new Blues Brothers poster with 6'6 Parayko resting one arm on 5'9 Krug's head.

 

[simon IC]

By nice wheels, I don't just mean olympic speed skating on straightways, and people who are familiar with hockey seldom do.

Krug, yes, his straightaway speed over distance is average at best, but acceleration and lateral movements are fairly elite, which is often allows him the ideal angles for moving in from the point and putting pucks on net. Faulk is similar, his speed is slightly above average, but his skating is not only strong, but agility is superior; all you have to see is the all star competitions that he participated in. Perunovich is definitely quick, and also has above average speed, definitely not going to lose a foot race against most skaters in the NHL, he's not going to blow anyone away, but he doesn't need to with his agility.

Faster, yes we do indeed get faster, a bit on straight line speed, but much more in terms of the D-corps ability to do quick break outs, and accelerate through the neutral zone after broken plays. I'm not sure what you mean by "nip it in the bud", but the narrative you are pushing is inaccurate at best.

Sorry, I still disagree. Take out Pietrangelo, Bouwmeester an Edmundson, and replace them with Faulk, Krug and Scandella. Pietrangelo is just as good, if not better a skater than the three replacements, and that includes his agility. Bouwmeester, even at the age of 37 is a better skater in every aspect than anyone mentioned in the conversation. Edmundson is actually a very good skater, a fact that is often overlooked. Even if you take out Scandella and put in Perunovch, just for the sake of argument, I still fail to see how our projected defence is faster, even if we use your definitions of faster.

 

[simon IC]

I actually want to see Parayko focus on his shutdown game. I have read some posts that want to see how he adjusts to being the on the top pairing, but I really hope he is not pressured to replenish the loss of Pietrangelo's offensive contributions. With Krug, Faulk, and possibly Perunovich in the lineup next season, we really do not need him to step up his offense. I think it is crucial to the team's success that Parayko continues to be an elite defensive defenseman.

 

[TruBlu]

I actually want to see Parayko focus on his shutdown game. I have read some posts that want to see how he adjusts to being the on the top pairing, but I really hope he is not pressured to replenish the loss of Pietrangelo's offensive contributions. With Krug, Faulk, and possibly Perunovich in the lineup next season, we really do not need him to step up his offense. I think it is crucial to the team's success that Parayko continues to be an elite defensive defenseman.

I think it'll take a period of adjustment, but Parayko did very well when Petro went down for a month back in 2016. The entire D structure has always been laid out based on Petro in years past. This could be an exciting change having a shut down D guy as the number 1 now; especially with a guy like Krug on the other side. My only hope is that we address our lack of top six scoring before the season starts.

 

[EastVillageBlues]

Sorry, I still disagree. Take out Pietrangelo, Bouwmeester an Edmundson, and replace them with Faulk, Krug and Scandella. Pietrangelo is just as good, if not better a skater than the three replacements, and that includes his agility. Bouwmeester, even at the age of 37 is a better skater in every aspect than anyone mentioned in the conversation. Edmundson is actually a very good skater, a fact that is often overlooked. Even if you take out Scandella and put in Perunovch, just for the sake of argument, I still fail to see how our projected defence is faster, even if we use your definitions of faster.

We can just agree to disagree, no biggie.

Bowe was great, I agree, his skating ability was well known when he was a rookie, and somehow became underrated at the end of his career (he didn't really drastically slow down like some tend to describe). Scandella is definitely a step or two below that even at Jay Bow's worst. Petro is a smooth skater, but not really exceptional in any aspect of skating, pretty comparable to the rest mentioned. I disagree about Edmondson, he distinctly is in the lower tier in the NHL in terms of agility and acceleration, if you watch games where he attempts to bring puck up the ice. Perunovich, from the games I have watched, in terms of overall summing up various aspects of skating, among those mentioned, would be only 2nd to JayBow here.

 

[cardinalnation]

This is a really interesting question and one which I too have been thinking about. The short answer is NO. The team is transitioning to a quicker style and that actually started last year with the Faulk trade and Jordan Kyrou (when he played). This style change makes it hard to gauge what this years Blues will do as far as wins and losses.
I think some of you are confused about skating ability and speed. You don’t have to be Pavel Bure to play fast. Just look at our very own Jaden Schwartz. This is even more true for defenseman and Krug and Faulk both fit that mold. They want to move the puck faster not necessarily the skates. Skill level will be higher but we are in uncharted waters this year without Pie.

If they can work something out with Steen and get Mike Hoffman in here that will be strong evidence of a purposeful transition to a more skilled roster. Our power play would be filthy with that guy and Krug. You could also see Vets like Bozak and Bortuzzo moved. This would put younger and faster skates in their minutes. The roster moves between now and the season will tell us what direction the Blues are trying to go. I believe they have already stated where they would Like to go and that is faster and more skilled. I think they really need to do something like this anyway because Colorado and Vegas are going to both be Beasts and as we saw this year you can never count out Dallas.

 

[simon IC]

This is a really interesting question and one which I too have been thinking about. The short answer is NO. The team is transitioning to a quicker style and that actually started last year with the Faulk trade and Jordan Kyrou (when he played). This style change makes it hard to gauge what this years Blues will do as far as wins and losses.
I think some of you are confused about skating ability and speed. You don’t have to be Pavel Bure to play fast. Just look at our very own Jaden Schwartz. This is even more true for defenseman and Krug and Faulk both fit that mold. They want to move the puck faster not necessarily the skates. Skill level will be higher but we are in uncharted waters this year without Pie.

If they can work something out with Steen and get Mike Hoffman in here that will be strong evidence of a purposeful transition to a more skilled roster. Our power play would be filthy with that guy and Krug. You could also see Vets like Bozak and Bortuzzo moved. This would put younger and faster skates in their minutes. The roster moves between now and the season will tell us what direction the Blues are trying to go. I believe they have already stated where they would Like to go and that is faster and more skilled. I think they really need to do something like this anyway because Colorado and Vegas are going to both be Beasts and as we saw this year you can never count out Dallas.

I don't think moving out Bortuzzo would be a good idea right now. our PK has taken a big enough hit as it is.

 

[Bluesguru]

I think Dunn will end up traded for a defense first type D man. I like our D, but we need one more shutdown type guy in there. JMO

 

[GoldenSeal]

How does this group stop offense first Dmen? I see what Army wants to do but I don’t think itll pan out without at least one more skilled Dman who can shelter.

 

[simon IC]

How does this group stop offense first Dmen? I see what Army wants to do but I don’t think itll pan out without at least one more skilled Dman who can shelter.

There aren't any available. Armstrong went for what he thought were the best defensemen available at the respective times. Torey Krug and Justin Faulk. Neither are strong defensively, but (usually) put up good numbers. Personally, I think Armstrong settled for the best he could get. That does not mean that either one is a good fit for the team.

 

[Reality Czech]

There aren't any available. Armstrong went for what he thought were the best defensemen available at the respective times. Torey Krug and Justin Faulk. Neither are strong defensively, but (usually) put up good numbers. Personally, I think Armstrong settled for the best he could get. That does not mean that either one is a good fit for the team.

I said it before, but I wouldn't mind seeing us sign Chara to a one-year deal if he's open to playing one more year. Yes, he is a shell of his former self but he's definitely defense-first and I think he could still be a solid addition playing sheltered minutes. Not only that, his work ethic and experience would be great for our younger players. I don't expect it to happen, but it could be a good low-risk move. Flame away!

 

[GoldenSeal]

I said it before, but I wouldn't mind seeing us sign Chara to a one-year deal if he's open to playing one more year. Yes, he is a shell of his former self but he's definitely defense-first and I think he could still be a solid addition playing sheltered minutes. Not only that, his work ethic and experience would be great for our younger players. I don't expect it to happen, but it could be a good low-risk move. Flame away!

For the role, this isn’t a bad idea...

 

[BlueKnight]

I said it before, but I wouldn't mind seeing us sign Chara to a one-year deal if he's open to playing one more year. Yes, he is a shell of his former self but he's definitely defense-first and I think he could still be a solid addition playing sheltered minutes. Not only that, his work ethic and experience would be great for our younger players. I don't expect it to happen, but it could be a good low-risk move. Flame away!

I would be in favor to signing Chara. Yes he is old but the guy is still a physical beast.

 

[Sgt Schultz]

I would be in favor to signing Chara. Yes he is old but the guy is still a physical beast.

Where Chara has lost a stride is not in the area we need. Old, slower, and maybe not quite as menacing, but opponents still want to know where he is when they are in the attacking zone. I'm not sure how realistic it is, but it sounds like a quality we could use right now.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Chara’s willingness to play with a broken jaw was inspiring, but even before the injury he was a liability for Boston in that series. He’s only declined further. Sure, getting a prime age Chara would be a no-brainer. But we may as well add any number of over-the-hill guys who can’t help. If you add Chara, who do you get rid of (realistically)?

 

[GoldenSeal]

Chara’s willingness to play with a broken jaw was inspiring, but even before the injury he was a liability for Boston in that series. He’s only declined further. Sure, getting a prime age Chara would be a no-brainer. But we may as well add any number of over-the-hill guys who can’t help. If you add Chara, who do you get rid of (realistically)?

Chara would ideally becomes an extra man and a healthy scratch on the roster. You wouldn’t need him on every occasion but you would need him at some point.

 

[sfvega]

I actually want to see Parayko focus on his shutdown game. I have read some posts that want to see how he adjusts to being the on the top pairing, but I really hope he is not pressured to replenish the loss of Pietrangelo's offensive contributions. With Krug, Faulk, and possibly Perunovich in the lineup next season, we really do not need him to step up his offense. I think it is crucial to the team's success that Parayko continues to be an elite defensive defenseman.

I agree with everything here except for Eddy's skating which was pretty suspect IMO.

I also think people are overthinking our pairings going into next year. Are we going to go with an unproven Mikkola as 2nd pair to do the heavy lifting for Faulk or Scandella who has been around forever? Esp with Chief and how much he puts on young guys' plates to start. And I wasn't really a fan of Scandella in the bubble and question extending him after such a short time span, but to think he goes to 3rd pairing for a rookie is pretty notable youth bias.