The St. Louis Blues hope all their draft picks pan out, prior and definitely after making it to the NHL. Scott Perunovich has not achieved the latter, but he is definitely making waves prior to turning pro.
There were a couple St. Louis Blues scouts that were quite excited when Scott Perunovich was still available at the 45th overall pick, in the second round, of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. Defenders are a little harder to judge, but Perunovich had plenty of upside.
When the Blues drafted him, he was coming off a stellar first season at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Perunovich had a lot of offensive upside, scoring 11 goals and 36 points in his freshman season.
He was the first ever Minnesota-Duluth freshman to be named Rookie of the Year and Offensive Defenseman of the Year. Perunovich also set a team record for points by a freshman defender and his 36 points was fourth for all defenders in the nation.
He was part of a National Championship team that season too. Getting drafted was just the icing on the cake.
2018-19 was a down year offensively for Perunovich. He only had three goals. However, he still ranked third on the team with 29 points in 39 games.
Despite the lack of goals, Perunovich was still a key component for the Bulldogs. He was part of the mix that led their school to a second-straight national title in 2019.
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Perunovich was on pace for another fantastic season in 2019-20. Despite the early end of the season due to the covid-19 pandemic, he already set a career high for points in his collegiate career with 40, in just 34 games.
Sadly, he won’t have an opportunity to challenge for a three-peat. Due to the pandemic, the NCAA canceled all remaining winter and spring championships. So, what could theoretically be Perunovich’s final collegiate season, he was at his personal best but won’t get to find out if his team would be at their best once more.
However, despite the clear disappointment of not being able to finish what you started as a team, Perunovich has and continues to rack up personal accolades.
Prior to even being drafted he was named an AHCA East First-Team All-American, NCHC First All-Conference Team, NCHC All-Rookie team, All-Tournament Team, NCHC Offensive Defenseman of the Year, and NCHC Rookie of the Year. In the season after being drafted, he was selected to the all-conference team again, named an ACHA (American Hockey Coaches of America) East Second-Team All-American and also a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, which is essentially college hockey’s Heisman Trophy.
Now, after the 2019-20 season, he added more achievements. He was named NCHC Offensive Defenseman of the Year. He was the co-winner of the conference’s Three Stars of the Game Award.
Perunovich was also just named College Hockey News’ Player of the Year. If you’re wondering what weight that has, their 2019 Player of the Year was Cale Makar who was the favorite of many to win the NHL’s Calder Trophy this season with the Colorado Avalanche.
Who knows what Perunovich’s future holds. Technically, he still has a year of eligibility left if he wants to go for that third championship with the Bulldogs.
He is also, technically, unsigned by the Blues at this moment. However, that could have more to do with the NCAA eligibility rules than the Blues not wanting him under contract or him having any issue with the Blues organization.
Clouding things for Makar is also the Blues defensive situation. The Blues are not overly deep with defenseman in the system, but they are pretty set in the NHL – sort of.
The NHL situation is actually somewhat of a mess. It is likely that Jay Bouwmeester‘s career is done, but until he announces it, the Blues are in limbo with that spot.
Alex Pietrangelo is a free agent this summer. How much he wants in a contract will determine whether the Blues retain him or not.
Marco Scandella has fit with the Blues like a glove. He is also a free agent and nobody knows what kind of money he would seek or if the Blues could afford him if they have Pietrangelo too.
Given all those factors, if Perunovich came into camp and impressed, he could easily turn pro and maybe even see time in the NHL next season. Time will tell on that.
Just because he was named to the same award as Makar, doesn’t mean he will be the next Makar. He could easily be the next Jake Walman, who is just now showing signs of life in the AHL (prior to the stoppage).
However, Perunovich has proven at the college level that he is no flash in the pan. He has been a steady offensive producer and gotten better each year defensively.
"“He was one of the best offensive players in the country and developed into a premier defender as well in his junior season.” – Joe Meloni, College Hockey News"
Perhaps he returns to Minnesota-Duluth. Maybe he turns pro.
If Perunovich keeps progressing at his current pace, however, we will see him in a Blues uniform soon enough.
For now, it’s impressive enough that he has racked up all these personal awards. Like a lot of Blues draftees, he also knows how to win too, given those two national championship rings he has.