A Torey Story: Krug Making A Name For Himself

May 16, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Torey Krug (47) celebrates a goal during the third period in game one of the second round of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Rookie Boston Bruins defenseman, Torey Krug, has taken Boston and the NHL playoffs by storm. Krug, who hasn’t played a game in the big leagues in over a year, now has his first two career NHL goals in his fist two career playoff appearances. He is the first player to score his first career goals in back-to-back playoff games since Justin Abdelkader did it back in 2009 for the Detroit Red Wings.

Krug is still considered a rookie because he only played in two games last season for the Bruins before being sent back down to Providence. He was an emergency call-up last week when a trio of Bruins defensemen went down with injuries and many around Boston thought the B’s were a sinking ship.

With Krug dressed it meant the B’s now had three, yes three, rookie defensemen dressed to take on a Rangers squad that features Rick Nash on offense and thats a daunting task even when the B’s are healthy on the blue-line. But the youngsters haven’t stumbled in the bright lights of the Stanley Cup playoffs, they’ve excelled and Krug is leading the way.

Many say the B’s need to get younger on defense, I’d say we’re getting a good look at the future right now with Krug, Dougie Hamilton and Matt Bartkowski.

Not only have Krug’s goals and one assist been timely, but a couple of them have been of the spectacular variety. So, its easy to see why B’s fans would be excited about Krug, who was an undrafted free-agent out of Michigan State before signing with Boston last year. He is playing with confidence and its showing at both ends of the ice.

The offensive side of his game is there, but at 5’9″, its hard not to wonder if Krug can hold his own in the defensive end against some pretty big bodies that play in the NHL. It hasn’t been a problem yet and in fact its been quite the opposite, many of the Rangers bigger forwards have found themselves chasing Krug around because he is a solid skater with slick stick skills.

While its all well and good to be excited about Krug’s success and his potential, we should take a step back and remember this is a 22-year old kid. He wouldn’t be the first person to make a big splash in the NHL and then have a few bumps in the near future. Plenty of other rookies have had playoff success or just early career success before stumbling or not panning out.

Heck, just look at the Rangers’ Chris Kreider who was a beast last year in the playoffs for the Rangers but has since struggled and even got sent down to the minors for a stretch this season before returning to the Rangers. Maybe the lockout hurt him, but whatever the reason, Kreider hasn’t looked like the player that he did last year.

However, instead of being negative or pessimistic about Krug, lets just enjoy the kids recent success and hope he can continue to help out the B’s on their quest for a 2nd Stanley Cup championship in 3 seasons. So far, so good.