The St. Louis Blues have announced that Torey Krug is out day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He suffered the injury during the team’s loss to the Arizona Coyotes Monday afternoon. The team announced Krug’s updated status late Monday afternoon.
Torey Krug is considered day-to-day. https://t.co/19BfFV4zoJ #stlblues
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) February 15, 2021
Blues Torey Krug Out Day-To-Day
Krug was off to a slow start after joining the team as a high-profile replacement for Alex Pietrangelo. The former Boston Bruins blueliner has just one goal and nine points in 15 games. Those aren’t bad numbers, but 0.6 points per game is Krug’s lowest since 2015-16. It’s resulted in some additional opportunities for Justin Faulk, but there is plenty of time for the 29-year-old Krug to return and dominate as expected. He still has above-average possession numbers and is just having some bad luck at this point.
It’s hard to believe, but Krug joined the league as an undrafted free agent after a college career at Michigan State. The Bruins signed him prior to 2011-12 and he saw brief action until 2013-14 when he exploded. The 5′-9″, 186-pound defender posted 14 goals and 40 points in 79 games in a campaign that earned him a fourth-place finish in the Calder Trophy voting that season. Overall, Krug has 68 goals and 346 points in 538 games. He’s been living proof that draft selection is no barrier to NHL success.
How St. Louis Replaces Krug
The injuries keep piling up for the Blues, but the blueline is still relatively unscathed. Look for either Niko Mikkola or Jake Walman to re-enter the lineup if Krug is ruled out for their Thursday game against the San Jose Sharks. Neither Mikkola or Walman has a point in 2020-21, but St. Louis can easily bump Vince Dunn into a larger role and have one of them take over on the bottom pairing. This is not an ideal injury, but it’s manageable for the moment considering the existing blueline depth.
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