Penalties rearing their ugly heads for Blues early in season

Team took seven minors in a 2-1 shootout loss against Sharks on 

Wednesday at Enterprise Center, helping Sharks gain two-game split 

By LOU KORAC
ST. LOUIS -- A point is a point, and in the NHL, you have to take them when you can get them.

But in the Blues' case of a 2-1 shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday at Enterprise Center, this was a really good point because it was probably one they didn't deserve but also one that could have easily turned into two, if that makes sense.

(St. Louis Blues/Scott Rovak)

Jordan Binnington (right) makes a save on Sharks center Tomas Hertl in

front of teammate Justin Faulk on Wednesday.

For the first time this season, the Blues (2-1-1) scored first, but couldn't finish the deal, and bottom line, it was penalties that did them in.

The Blues took seven minor penalties in the game, giving them 22 for the season, which tied for third-most in the league, and their 44 penalty minutes through four games is tied for fifth-most.

A penalty kill that came in dead-last in the NHL at 42.9 percent (6-for-14 kill efficiency) can't afford to spend all that time in the box, but believe it or not, the Blues were a perfect 7-for-7 on Wednesday. Killing them off wasn't the problem this time, but having to spend so much time in the box takes away from other parts of the game, and it really reared its ugly head when the Blues, who killed two brief 5-on-3 Sharks power-plays, spent much of the third period in their zone and got outshot 17-3.

"PK killed off seven penalties. I mean two, 5-on-3's. It's ridiculous, the penalties," an upset Blues coach Craig Berube said after the game. "We can't go to the box that much. It's really hard on people, it's hard on our team. Can't get to our game because of it. I don't know where we're at in the league penalty-wise, but might be leading the league."

A hooking call on David Perron 200 feet from his net started it all in the first period. Then there was an inadvertent delay of game minor on Colton Parayko late in the first the killer, the all-too-familiar too many men minor ... while on the power play.

And this one was as simple as Parayko jumping out of the penalty box himself and scooting to his bench. Perron jumps on in his place, but hold on, he leaes too soon, the linesman catches it and boom. There goes the power play.

"Well it's not a smart play," Berube said. "You've got to wait until the guy gets to the box. That's it."

Asked if he had any problems with the calls, Berube said, "No.

"They're penalties. That's why they call them."

The Blues were able to weather those in the first and come out of the period 0-0, and then got the lead when Brayden Schenn scored at 4:27 in the second for a 1-0 lead, but then penalties became an issue again.

Defenseman Torey Krug gets called for holding, and at the tail end of that kill, Oskar Sundqvist takes an ill-advised slashing penalty with 20 seconds left on Krug's penalty.
The Blues got away with that two-man disadvantage thanks to Evander Kane's knuckleheadedness -- he took four of San Jose's five minors on the night, including the first four -- that included spearing Jordan Binnington late in the period.

"Then it was Carl Gunnarsson jettisoned to the box for slashing near the midpoint of the third, and Parayko was called for a second time in the game, this time for holding midway through the period, a penalty that may have actually saved the Blues from giving up the lead of a 1-1 game because they were scrambling around their own net like a hot potato.

They couldn't clear pucks on a regular basis, and San Jose was buzzing.

Thanks to Binnington and his 37 saves for the game, it remained that way.

"It's a 1-1 game and just compete," Binnington said. "Our kill hasn't been doing so well coming into this game, so we know we wanted to have a good penalty kill, special teams. I think we had a good night in that department. But, you know, not the outcome we wanted.

"They had a little more juice. In a two-game series, losing the first game, they want to come out hard and win the next game. They were coming hard. We worked. It's coming together. But yeah, they had a good game."

The Blues may have righted the PK for one game, but it's not the style of game they want to play that taxes certain players out.

(St. Louis Blues/Scott Rovak)

Blues defenseman Colton Parayko steps into a slap shot during a 2-1

shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday.

"Yeah, PK was definitely better," Schenn said. "I still think it wasn't our best effort as a team 5-on-5. I think we have a lot to clean up there. Binner made some good saves, he was on his game tonight and helped us get a point. So we know we can be a little bit better but at the end of the day, it's tough winning against the same team on back-to-backs or playing the same team twice. So I guess we grabbed a point and moved forward."

In taking so many minors, the Blues turned pucks over, didn't win loose pucks and were outworked along the walls, and Berube noticed it.

"We've got a lot of guys that aren't skating and not competing hard enough," he said matter-of-factly.

"It was a weird game," Schenn said. "It just felt like special teams, and not much rhythm, not much pace to it. But like I said, we've got to find a way to clean up a few things. Be better. We just can't be satisfied with getting one point."