Colton Parayko is a part of the wild roster of rookies having a great 2015-16 campaign in the early going. Parayko has been notable because he is maybe the most unexpected of the guys like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Dylan Larkin, Anthony Duclair or Max Domi that have exploded onto the scene this season.
In Thursday’s win over the Anaheim Ducks, Parayko grabbed the game-winning goal on one of 10 shots the rookie blueliner fired off. Those 10 shots are the most in a single game by any rookie since Alex Ovechkin in April of 2006 and the most in Blues history for a rookie.
Despite those impressive numbers, it appears that Parayko was injured during Thursday’s game and played through it. CBS Sports’ Frank Cusumano reports that Parayko was in a walking boot at practice on Friday and that he’ll be a game-time decision on Saturday.
Parayko recorded 10 SOG, setting a new Blues single-game rookie record. The last rookie to do that? Alex Ovechkin. pic.twitter.com/TTnLvdTqUb
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) October 30, 2015
In addition to the Parayko injury, Ken Hitchcock played coy about Vladimir Tarasenko not participating in Friday’s practice, with Jeremy Rutherford reporting that Hitchcock said Tarasenko had an “off day” on Friday and that more information will be provided on Saturday as to his status.
The concern in Tarasenko taking a day off is that he took a pretty stiff hit from Shawn Horcoff in Thursday’s game, which can bee seen below via @MyRegularFace.
https://twitter.com/myregularface/status/659909526985027584
Hitch wasn't very forthcoming on how Tarasenko is feeling. Indicated he's OK, but called it an "off day" and said we'll know more tomorrow.
— Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) October 30, 2015
Parayko is in a walking boot but Hitch says that is a precaution. He is a game-time decision. #stlblues
— Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) October 30, 2015
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Dustin Nelson is the News Editor for The Hockey Writers. He’s a contributor to Hockey Prospectus, Hockey Wilderness, and writes a column for Rotowire. He’s also written for Gone Puck Wild, Wild Xtra, InDigest, Electric Literature, The Rumpus, Tiny Mix Tapes, Prefix Magazine & other publications. Have a tip? Email him at dlukenelson[at]gmail[dot]com.
