Torey Krug’s devastating hit on St. Louis Blues winger Robert Thomas understandably has gotten a lot of attention, but it’s easy to forget the sequence started with the Boston Bruins defenseman getting tangled up with one of Thomas’ teammates.
In the third period of the B’s 4-2 win over the Blues in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, Krug and Blues winger David Perron got tangled up in front of Tuukka Rask. The game of twister lasted a few seconds, up until Perron finally was able to break free and skate back to the St. Louis bench. Krug dashed toward Perron but ended up cutting up ice when it was clear Perron was heading to the bench. The defenseman then crossed the blue line and laid a heavy hit on Thomas right after the puck passed the third-line winger.
The initial dustup only ended up being a footnote, but Perron explained to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Ben Frederickson what happened between him and Krug.
“At the time, we are obviously not playing a good game,” Perron said. “We are down, 3-2. There are 10 or so minutes to go. The penalties are at 4-1, 5-1, 5-2, 4-2, whatever, right around there. I think I can push the envelope a little bit. At worst, I feel like I’m getting (my team) a 4-on-4. If he gives me an extra slash or something, maybe we get on the power play. That was my perspective.
“I was pretty exhausted, so I figured he was,” Perron added. “I only heard the crowd. I didn’t see the hit. I had to see it yesterday. You never want to see a teammate get hit like that, for sure. It was a good response by him, and momentum for them. … It could have turned in many ways. Maybe he takes another penalty from that (hit on Thomas). It’s really tough to say. It didn’t work out for us. But, when you feel the game getting away from you, you are trying to do things to change that.”
Indeed, the hit on Thomas gave the Bruins a pretty huge boost. We won’t know if the Blues are seeking retribution until the puck drops for Game 2 on Wednesday, but Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy, for one, doesn’t expect St. Louis to retaliate.
Thomas will be out for Game 2 with an undisclosed injury, but Blues head coach Craig Berube indicated it’s not related to the Krug hit.
