St. Louis Blues 2019-20 Player Projections: Colton Parayko
By Tyler Andrus
At just 26 years old, St. Louis Blues defenseman Colton Parayko is already regarded as a top-tier defenseman, drawing comparisons to 2000 Hart Trophy winner Chris Pronger.
Colton Parayko looms large on the blue line for the St. Louis Blues at 6’6”, 230 lbs and he is heading into the third season of his contract valued at $5.5 million a year. It may sound like a lot, but trust me he is worth every penny.
For starters, he is incredibly consistent. The Blues know what they are going to get out of Parayko on a nightly basis. He brings a little bit of physicality, shot-blocking, and is very smart with the hockey puck.
Every year he finds himself around the 30-point mark and averages roughly 22 minutes on the ice per night. Lastly, Parayko has played in more than 75 contests every year of his NHL career, making him incredibly durable.
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Last year the pride of St. Albert, Alberta saw his scoring drop a couple of points netting a career-high 10 goals but just 28 points. The argument could be made that his defensive pairing did not help him out a lot.
While it makes sense to put Parayko on the second defensive pairing, putting him on the second line with a more defensive defenseman could potentially hurt his offensive production.
It could also mean that he would be playing with our second and third lines (which had some trouble early on in the season).
Drop-in scoring aside, Parayko had yet another great season and capped it off by winning the first Stanley Cup in St. Louis Blues history.
Individually, his 2019-20 season looks even brighter. During the 2019 playoffs, he showed everyone just how brightly he can shine, even on the biggest stage. In 26 games he racked up 12 points and 42 blocked shots on whopping 25 minutes per game.
Nothing is stopping 55 from putting up 40 points this season. Parayko could easily set career highs in goals and assists if he can keep the momentum going from the playoffs and if he plays on a Blues team that does not scuffle coming out of the gate again.
As he continues to mature defensively, he will progress in his ability to read opposing offenses which could result in more blocked shots and potentially a higher level of physicality.
The Pronger comparison might be a little bit of a stretch at the moment, but it becomes less of a stretch if he can duplicate his playoff performance over the course of a full season.