Hitchcock to change Blues' defensive rotation
/The St. Louis Post-Dispatch examines how the Blues defense needs to get stronger and meaner, while noting head coach Ken Hitchcock's response.
Hitchcock acknowledged the lack of physicality on the back end by replying to the inquiry, “I know what you’re saying.” But he stressed that the solution isn’t having the team’s young defensemen bulk up or finding others to come in and clear the crease.
“I look at Petro from when I first came here,” Hitchcock began. “He’s so much stronger than he was two years ago and it’s the same with Shatty. I think their conditioning level along with the maturity of the physical side of things is going to make them better players. They’re going to be able sustain a higher level of play, being able to handle the rigors of the season.
“It’s not just in getting stronger or getting more physical. It’s playing better and better as you move along. You reach a certain stage in your career where the whole thing starts to fit together. We think both Petro and Shatty are reaching that stage, but they’re still awfully young players for defensemen in the National Hockey League. A lot of people say the age is around 26-27, and they’re not there yet.”
Hitchcock is looking from within the Blues’ group for improvement.
“For us to get better, we have to look at changing the way we play our players, not changing players,” Hitchcock said. “We have to get more people doing more things to help us get to the next level. That means within this group, we have to find a way to free up Petro and Bouw more. It’s not going to mean less ice time for them, but it’s going to mean the spots we put them on the ice might be more advantageous to us offensively.
“It means that rather than just use that pair exclusively for playing against the other team’s top players, other people are going to have to take on that responsibility. We can’t keep playing the players with the same rotation and expect a better result.”