Recognizing that they need their young defenseman out of Notre Dame on the ice, the St. Louis Blues have decided to send Cole and forward Adam Cracknell to Peoria.
Cole isn't being sent down to Peoria because he is not playing well, because he is.
The 22 year old defenseman has tallied 4 points this season. But most impressively has been his work defensively in front of Blues goalie Jaroslav Halak.
Defenseman are often measured by their plus/minus rating and Cole is a +4 on the season in 26 games. The bigger picture shows, even more impressively, is that Cole has not had been on the minus side in any one individual game since December 18th.
Impressive.
Also impressive is Cole's ability to block shots, which he routinely has led the Blues in during recent games.
Cole is making himself into the perfect defensive compliment to Alex Pietrangelo and Kevin Shattenkirk.
Meanwhile, 25 year old forward Adam Cracknell has also been sent to Peoria. Cracknell scored a goal during Saturday night's 6-3 win and has tallied 6 points on the season.
Cole's demotion to Peoria may be a head-scratcher for some, but he certainly has played well enough for the Blues to consider him a full time player at the NHL level next season.
Sources:
Comments
Post a Comment