No one needs reminding that the Blues power play was last in the NHL last season. But there, I wrote it anyway.

This is a new year, however, and the Blues are looking for better results. In its first real practice of training camp, the team devoted much of its attention to the power play Saturday. 

The first unit consisted of Keith Tkachuk, Andy McDonald, Brad Boyes, Paul Kariya and Eric Brewer (Erik Johnson would be in the spot occupied by Brewer, but he of course is out with the knee injury).

When you see this unit work, you’ll notice that Kariya is no longer playing on the half-wall . . . he is positioned on the left point. Brewer was on the opposite point, with Tkachuk in front of the net and Boyes and McDonald in opposite corners.

“(Kariya) played there the last eight games (last season) and our power play was more effective, playing him on the left side,” Murray said. “At that time, we had (Erik Johnson) on the right point. We kind of went into the year with that mindset.”

The decision to spend a lot of time on the power play in the first practice Saturday “is a way of making a point with the guys,” Murray said. “We’re going to work at it.”

The second power-play unit included Jeff Woywitka and Steve Wagner at the points with Lee Stempniak, David Backes and David Perron up front.

On whether Patrik Berglund will be an option for the power play this year, Murray said: “Maybe. Again, we have to see these guys play against NHL guys. He’s an option, but whose spot does he take?”

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Perron was strictly a winger last year for the Blues. I asked Murray today if Perron could play center:

“He tells me he can,” Murray said. “It’s a possibility. We have Berglund, who’s a centerman, we’ve got Oshie can play center . . . we’ve got Andy (McDonald), we have Keith (Tkachuk), we have (Yan) Stastny, we have Jay McClement. We have some different options.”

Tkachuk has mentioned a few times that he’d prefer to play left wing this year, after playing center much of the last two years. Asked about that, Murray said: “I think . . . if Keith goes out and plays a game at center and gets two goals, he’s going to come in afterwards and say, ‘I’m a pretty good centerman.’”

On where Tkachuk is most effective, Murray said: “He can play both and I think that’s a valuable asset for us.”

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Murray said he expects the Blues veterans (Tkachuk, Kariya, etc.) to play in four or five of the seven preseason games. A majority of them will play in KC on Monday.

“There’s a lot of Blues fans in Kansas City and they deserve to see our product,” Murray said. “

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Defenseman Barret Jackman left practice a few minutes early with a back strain, according to Murray.

“I think his back tightened up on him,” Jackman said. “He’ll be fine.”

Murray said Jackman was questionable for Sunday’s scrimmage, but the strain isn’t serious.

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No update on Erik Johnson. Johnson said Friday night that his knee felt fine, but the Blues are holding to their announcement that they’ll know more on Tuesday.

“To be honest, I haven’t even asked the question (of how he’s doing),” Murray said. “He’s not seeing anybody till Tuesday, so we don’t know anymore.”

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Murray said the Blues will make some cuts next week, but he didn’t know how many. There are only 50 players in camp, unlike previous years when the Blues invited 60 or 70 to camp. Many of the junior players were sent back to their respective teams after the Prospects Tournament in Traverse City last week.

I mentioned that the Blues divided the players into blue and gold teams. The blue team is made up of players that actually played a game for the Blues last season. There is one exception: Mark Cundari, an 18-year-old defenseman who played for Windsor in the OHL last year.

Before Erik Johnson’s injury, Murray had the rosters set and after the injury he didn’t want to disrupt them. Also, it was easier to put a guy like Cundari, who will be sent back to junior hockey, on the roster with the big boys than it would be to promote Jonas Junland, Alex Pietrangelo, Mike Weaver, Andy Wozniewski, etc. Whoever didn’t get selected out of that group might think they weren’t important enough.

The funny twist to the story is that when Cundari say the roster three weeks ago, and noticed that he was on a team with all NHL players, he called the Blues to see if he was reading the paper right.

“He’s calling his dad, saying Pietrangelo . . . I’m ahead of him,” Murray said, laughing.

JR