Has Colton Parayko got what it takes to replace Alex Pietrangelo for the St. Louis Blues?
It was the end of an era for the St. Louis Blues this summer after they lost Pietrangelo in Free Agency, and it now appears as though that Colton Parayko is ready to fill the void left by his former Captain.
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After suffering a crushing loss to the Vancouver Canucks in the First Round of the 2019-20 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Blues then had to stomach losing their franchise defenseman and leader in Pietrangelo, who opted to sign a blockbuster seven-year, $61,600,000 million dollar deal with the Vegas Golden Knights instead.
Granted, St. Louis did get a more than adequate replacement in former Boston Bruins blueliner Torey Krug, who signed a seven-year, $45,500,000 contract, and he will probably bring more offensive upside to the table for the Blues.
However, per nhl.com, Pietrangelo has backed his former teammate in Colton Parayko to rise to the challenge and replace him as the go-to-guy and the absolute horse on the backend for the St. Louis Blues.
"“I think he’s already an elite player, but I think with more opportunity and knowing he’s the guy on the backend, he’s going to be the guy, the leader of the backend. I think he’s going to thrive in that position.”– Alex Pietrangelo via nhl.com"
The million dollar question is, however, does Parayko have what it takes to fill Pietrangelo’s skates?
It is an interesting question and one we are going to attempt to answer as best as we possibly can.
Firstly, there is no doubt that Parayko is a high-end defenseman in his own right and he’s morphed into a key piece for the Blues, who thrive when playing an old-fashioned but effective big, bruising brand of hockey.
Smash mouth hockey as I like to call it.
Coming in at six-foot-6 and 230 pounds, Parayko is an absolute monster and he certainly epitomizes the big and hard-nosed game that the Blues love to play.
He’s blocked at least 100 shots in each of his first five seasons in the NHL, while he has had over 120 hits in two of the last three years, and he could have had 100 in 2019-20 after recording 87 in 64 games before the regular season was halted by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Very responsible in his own zone, able to hit like an absolute train but also smart as proven by the fact that he has had received votes for the Lady Byng Trophy in each of the last three seasons, Parayko is a reliable presence for the Blues in that top-four.
Parayko, who recorded a career-high ATOI of 23:00 in 2019-20 which was second behind Pietrangelo (24:11), is also capable of providing offense as proven by his 28 points (10 G, 18 A) in 64 games in 2019-20, his second consecutive 28 point season.
The right shot has proven his ability to come up clutch and perform in the biggest moments too, averaging 25:07 of ATOI in 26 postseason games as the Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2018-19, with Parayko doing an outstanding job of shutting down the Boston Bruins’ big three of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak.
Parayko, along with veteran Jay Bouwmeester, limited arguably one of the best lines in all of hockey to just five points (two goals, three assists) in even-strength situations, a huge factor in the Blues winning their first championship in franchise history.
Granted, Parayko wasn’t quite at his peak in this year’s Playoffs inside The Bubble, recording just two points (2 G, 0 A) with a plus / minus rating of -4 in nine games, although that has probably more to do with how St. Louis performed as a team rather than a personal indictment of Parayko’s play.
That slight blip aside, however, Parayko has proven his worth to the Blues and, at just 27-years-old, he’s just about to hit his peak which means that he could have another level or two to reach.
Under contract through the 2021-22 season with a cap hit of $5.5 million, Parayko could be in line for another big payday if he can elevate his game further and step up into a much bigger role.
So, is he a ready-made replacement for Alex Pietrangelo?
Well, considering everything we mapped out above, coupled with the fact that Parayko can play in all situations and on the power play and on the penalty kill, there is reason to believe that the 86th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft can become the next horse on the blueline for St. Louis.
After all, he’s already proven that he can eat monster minutes and stay on the ice in key situations, while he’s also illustrated that he’s capable of shutting down the most potent weapons in the entire NHL on a nightly basis.
Plus, boasting a more well-rounded game and a beast in his own zone with his imposing size, Parayko could be bumped up to the top line to play alongside new recruit Torey Krug, who is more offensive-minded and would benefit from having a D partner who can play a two-way game and is more responsible in his own zone.
That partnership has all the ingredients to become a key one for the Blues, and it could help to drive St. Louis to a deep postseason run after fluffing their lines in 2019-20.
Overall, Parayko has all the intangibles you would want in a real leader on that backend; he’s well respected, he’s consistent on a night-to-night basis, he can eat big minutes, he can handle anything thrown his way, he’s impactful in all three zones, he can play in all situations and he boasts a high hockey IQ.
Furthermore, he’s a respected leader off the ice and is incredibly well-liked by his teammates, and that is a huge piece of the puzzle too.
Okay, so he may not be Alex Pietrangelo but, with Torey Krug on board, the St. Louis Blues just need Colton Parayko to be Colton Parayko and continue on his upwards trajectory and, if he can do that, then they may well just have found their new leader and horse on the backend, proving their former leader’s prophecy right.