MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- Pavel Buchnevich's second season with the Blues paralleled with his first.
Unfortunately for the forward, he missed more games this season with various injuries throughout. It didn't stop the 28-year-old from averaging more than a point per game -- the lone Blues skater to do so -- for a second straight season.
After averaging 1.04 points per game last season (76 in 73 games), Buchnevich was at a slightly high clip, 1.06 point per game on 67 points (26 goals, 41 assists) in 63 games, but what's even more impressive is the position switch late in the season to center didn't sway Buchnevich's all-around play much, if at all.
It may have affected his scoring, as coach Craig Berube put it, and his face-off percentage (29.91 percent) was not something he can hang his hat on, although he promised to get better at them, but the metrics point to Buchnevich affecting the game for the Blues, who were 37-38-7 on the season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017-18, in a positive way.
The humorous Russian pleased his mother by shaving for the first time (we think?), being disappointed not to be playing in the playoffs, becoming more of a leader now, and a variety of other topics:
Haven't seen you shave there in a while:
Yeah, first time. Mom was happy.
She does take some interest in your grooming, right? Told you last year you needed a haircut at one point:
Yeah. When I look ugly, she say, 'You've got to do it, you've got to do it.' So yesterday I just shave it and call my mom and she was happy. Good.
Your thoughts on the season as a whole and sitting here now has to be disappointing:
Disappointing season, especially after last year we battle pretty hard against Stanley Cup champ. Really different expectation where we're at right now. Not what I expect before this season, but you know, you have to learn from that and look in the mirror, everybody, individual, look as a team and put the effort in this summer working hard, the small details and we have to be ready for next season.
With O'Reilly and Tarasenko gone, more opportunity for you to become a leader and take control of this team:
Yeah, probably. It's definitely going to be new because of language barrier, all that stuff. But it's all coaches and management asking from me if I'm going to learn from that and try to help our (younger) guys to bring our group together and build from that.
When you were in NY, made it a point to get along with everyone regardless of background; how tough was it to lose fellow Russians Tarasenko and Barbashev to trades:
Yeah, it's tough. Definitely like I've been really close to both of them. I sit next to Barby in locker room all the time. We talk a lot, he helped me a lot. I think I helped him too. And Vladi, I play more than half games in St. Louis with him. It's tough part, but it's part of the business and you have to move forward. It's (the) past. Stop thinking about past and moving forward, we have good players, we have a good group and we have to build a new identity.
Seems like St. Louis has been good for you; do you feel like your game has grown since you've been here?
I definitely play more minutes, play in like all situations. I just don't know. I try to help the team to win definitely. In my perspective, I definitely play better in the first season definitely better than this one, but injuries, all that stuff happened. Some injuries I can't control, but I'm going to build from that and help the team win. I'm only like 27, 28 in the prime. It's the age when you're going to play much better hockey than like 22 or 21, you're still learning. I think in prime, I have to step up for team and help them win games.
How do you think you did as a center iceman and would you like to open next season as a center?
I don't know how to respond. Some games I think it's a prank, like everybody was joking. 'Oh, he played center' and all that stuff. I think some games I play really well in the center, all the face-offs, but last one, 0 and 11. So like you look at the stats and like, 'Tough one.' But it's still a learning process, new stuff. I play with 'Kapi' [Kasperi Kapanen] a lot lately. So he doesn't play center, I don't play center, so we try to help each other like complementary. It's definitely new and I'm going to work on face-offs, I promise you guys. I don't know what's going to happen here.
How much did your foot bother you with the infection? Is it OK now? Seemed like it bothered you most of the season:
I play like two months. It really bother me, like every practice, it's like painful to even walk. But now it's like better. With equipment, we figure out way to skate, we've got some stuff inside, but it's definitely when I got hit, two months I play with injury. It's hard to put a skate (on). If you look at my skate, I'm not even going to tape it too hard because it's pushing to my side and it's hard to skate or walk side to side. But after break, as soon as I got surgery, it's definitely way better. I feel pretty normal after that.