Torey Krug of the Boston Bruins checks Robert Thomas #18 of the St. Louis Blues during the third period in Game 1 of the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on May 27, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
Torey Krug buried Blues forward Robert Thomas with a thunderous hit late in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. It appears that Thomas is feeling some lingering effects from it.
As reported by Blues beat writer Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic, Thomas will not play for the Blues in Game 2 on Wednesday at TD Garden. No further details are known as of this writing, so it’s unclear what caused Thomas’ apparent absence or who would replace him in the Blues lineup. (Update: According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Thomas wasn’t on the ice for the Blues during Wednesday’s morning skate.)
Listen to Jeremy Rutherford on Toucher & Rich (begins at 13:26):
But it’s certainly easy to connect the dots, here. Krug took out his frustration on Thomas after a scrum with the Blues’ David Perron, streaking helmet-less down the ice and plowing through Thomas with a clean but ferocious shoulder check. Thomas was slow to get up after the hit but didn’t appear injured in the moment.
Torey Krug lights up Robert Thomas. pic.twitter.com/0U3cp1m60T
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) May 28, 2019
The hit drew some of the loudest cheers of the playoffs for the Bruins, who finished off the Blues to take a 1-0 series lead.
The Blues already appear to have issues with forward depth as compared to the Bruins in the Stanley Cup Final. Losing Thomas would certainly put another dent in that. But we’ll keep you posted on any further reports on Thomas’ status ahead of Wednesday’s game.
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at matthew.dolloff@bbgi.com.