Adding McTavish, McMichael to power play will give team new looks; team worked extensively on PP, PK on Sunday
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- Sunday was special teams’ day for the St. Louis Blues, who were getting a glimpse of two units that need to make marked improvements this season.
On PP1, there was Philip Broberg, Robert Thomas, Dylan Holloway, Mason McTavish and Jimmy Snuggerud. On PP2, Cam Fowler and Logan Mailloux traded spots running the point with Connor McMichael, Pavel Buchnevich, Dalibor Dvorsky and Jake Neighbours.
It was a power play that improved in the second half of the season but finished at 17.6 percent overall (25th in the league) and a penalty kill that was also 25th at 76.7 percent.
“I thought the penalty kill actually was a lot faster in zone than I was expecting just because it’s a new coach (Greg Cronin) and new methods, new structure,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. “The power play, I thought the attack mindset off of face-offs was better but after that, the first unit, too many turnovers needlessly. The other unit, they moved it really well at times and over stick-handling at times.
“Just an OK start on the power play, but we’re going to continue to work on that so we can be significantly better this year.”
Thomas and Snuggerud were interchangeable while running their reps, switching off from the left wall and net front, and yes, Snuggerud has the one-timer that would be a weapon, but it will all depend on who the Blues play and how those PK units line up.
“The versatility part will come from scouting other teams, but ideally, he’s on the half wall,” Montgomery said of Thomas. “You want the puck to run through the best decision maker on your team on the power play. If you look at Edmonton, it’s (Connor) McDavid or (Leon) Draisaitl. If you look at Tampa, it’s (Nikita) Kucherov, right? And that’s what he is for us, and he’s got to make it go.”
Adding McTavish to it should give the Blues a nice one-time option from the right circle, a spot that Holloway and Dvorsky occupied last season.
“He knows he has a great shot, he loves to shoot it, but I also saw him try and go backdoor a lot when it wasn’t in the right spot, and that’s trying to get more shot attempts,” Montgomery said of McTavish, who had 23 power-play goals the past two seasons of his 39. “Power play is a big focus.”
Holloway was being used in the bumper.
“It’s 50/50. We think MacT is better suited (in the right circle),” Montgomery said. “Looking at ‘Holly’s goals over the last two years, a lot of them come 5-on-5 from the bumper spot and that’s how he scored today. For some reason when he gets it there on that forehand side, he just rips it. He scored a lot of 5-on-5 F3 shots from there. It’s very similar. Now, he’s going to have a little bit of a progression of how to support pucks well like your high-end bumpers do, kind of like ‘Buchy’ does.”
There will be competition for spots and playing time on the special teams, especially the power play, and with Fowler and Mailloux taking reps on the point, nothing is set in stone yet.
“No, they’re differences. Besides the fact one’s lefty, one’s righty, but like we said Day 1 of camp, we want to make it a competitive camp,” Montgomery said. “No one’s being given anything, you’ve got to go out and earn it. So we’re seeing fights for certain positions and if certain players don’t play well on the power play, they won’t keep that right. It’s a privilege to be out there. I did like the way everybody worked today on the power play.”
PP1 unit will get their first game reps on Monday night in the second preseason game when the Blues travel to face the Dallas Stars.
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