Who is Blake Comeau?
After winning the Memorial Cup in 2004 with the Kelowna Rockets, Blake Comeau was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 2nd round of the 2004 draft (47th overall). He then made his NHL debut on December 7, 2006 against the Montreal Canadiens, but he split the 2006-2007 season between the National Hockey League and the AHL (playing with the Islanders’ affiliate team, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers). That season, he only played three games with New York, but he became a more important member of the Islanders’ organization at the beginning of the 2007-2008. Ironically he scored his first NHL goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins, in a 4-2 victory on December 21.
Rise and fall of the Canadian
In his first season in the NHL (as a real member of the team), Comeau played 51 games and got 15 points (8 goals and 7 assists). He played 53 games in the following season and scored 25 points (7 goals and 18 assists) but he was a -17 , which ranked him as the third worst forward on the club. After those 2 seasons, he became a permanent member of the organization and played in 61 games, scoring 35 points (17 goals and 18 assists) .
As a sign he was getting more comfortable in the league, he performed at the best of his career in the 2010-2011 season. He played in 77 games, scored 46 points (24 goals and 22 assists), and also notched three game-winning goals. However, his +/- rating went back to -17 as the team finished 5th in Atlantic Division (and 27th in terms of goals against). After that impressive season, he signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract. Unfortunately for him, he did not register a point in 16 games at the beginning of the following season, was placed on waivers, and was then picked up by the Calgary Flames. He played the following two seasons in Alberta and was traded before the 2013 trade deadline to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a 2013 fifth round draft pick. The following season, Columbus qualified for the NHL playoffs for the second time in team history. He was also the first time Comeau participated in playoffs. Unfortunately for him, the team lost in the conference quarterfinals to – what would later become his next team – the Pittsburgh Penguins. He did not register a point in those playoff games.
2014: A new beginning
Part of the reconstruction of the Penguins was to find a real third and fourth line. New GM Jim Rutherford started this process by recruiting Steve Downie, and then Comeau as a free agent on July 1, 2014, to a one-year, $700,000 contract. Knowing the Pens cap space, they had to go for some cheap free agents to develop their roster, but those two consecutive moves were extremely surprising. No one was expecting much of Comaeu; NHL.com even reported on July 1 that “Comeau is a strong, physical player that will add some edge to the team’s bottom-six,” exactly what the organization needed, found at a great price. But no one expected this 28-year-old left wing to become as important as he is right now.
In the projected lineup for the Penguins for the 2014-2015 season, Comeau was supposed to be the left wing on the 4th line, centered by Marcel Goc and Craig Adams as the right wing. Corey Masisak, of NHL.com, reported on August 8: “A full season of Marcel Goc and the addition of Blake Comeau is a huge boost for the fourth line, which was one of the worst in the NHL last season.” However, because of the Beau Bennett injury in the pre-season, he was moved to the 2nd line with Evgeni Malkin and Pascal Dupuis. He hasn’t left the top-six since.
To start, let’s look at some numbers: After 30 games, and before his injury, he ranked in the top 100 in the league in five categories:
- 32nd in goals with 11
- 94th in points with 19
- 61st in +/- rating with a +7
- 85th in Penalty Minutes with 26
- 9th in game winning goals with 3
He started the season pretty well, scoring the game-winning goal in the opening game against Anaheim, with an assist from Malkin. He plays 15:46 minutes on average per game, his highest average ice time since the 2011-2012 season with Calgary. He is leading all Pens forwards in hits (97) and he ranks 42nd in the league, even though he has missed 13 games so far this season. He is on pace to have the best season of his career with 0.59 points per game. After 30 games, with his 11 goals, he was the 3rd best scorer in the team behind Malkin (15) and tied with Patric Hornqvist.
He has been a great addition to the team, and even though he was supposed to populate the bottom-six forward list, he earned a spot in the top-six when the Penguins were forced to test the depth of the roster due to key players missing (Bennett and Chris Kunitz). Young players were called to help out and Comeau has been playing like a veteran. He is a new player but he’s showing some great things, especially a great chemistry with the best centers in the world. His reliability has been a key to the Pens success in the first quarter of the season.
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Main Photo by AP Photo/Keith Srakocic
