The St. Louis Blues can not afford to lose another defenseman right now, but that is exactly what happened early in their 5-1 Game 3 loss to the Minnesota Wild.
Torey Krug had to leave Friday’s game mid-way through the first period with a lower-body. He appeared to be injured while trying to deliver a check on Wild forward Matt Boldy.
If he has to miss time it is going to be a significant loss for a Blues team that was already thin on defense and dealing with several injuries. Veterans Robert Bortuzzo and Nick Leddy are also sidelined with upper-body injuries. Marco Scandella is also playing at less than 100 percent due to injury.
After being one of the best defensive teams in the league for several years the Blues have transformed into more of an offensive team whose weak link might be its blue line. The injuries that are currently mounting are not going to help situation, especially against a Minnesota team that is one of the best offensive teams in the league. After getting a shutout in Game 1 of the series, the Blues have now allowed 11 goals over the next two games and face a 2-1 series deficit.
The Blues signed Krug as an unrestricted free agent before the 2020-21 season to be their replacement for Alex Pietrangelo. After a down debut season, he bounced back this season with nine goals, 34 assists, and 43 total points in 64 games.
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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.