QUESTION: David Perron will return to the ice for the Blues on Saturday night. After being out more than a year with post-concussion syndrome how long do you think it will take Perron to round into complete game form and begin playing like himself again?
JEREMY RUTHERFORD
Well, if Perron recovered anything like Sidney Crosby, it won’t take long to get on the scoresheet. Crosby missed 10 1/2 months because of concussion symptoms and had four points in his first game back. He has 11 points (2 goals, 9 assists) in six games since he’s returned.
Perron is not Crosby, but he’s similar in that he’s a skilled forward. Perron has said that when he first returned to the ice, details such as his shooting accuracy were missing from his game. But that’s been several weeks now and he looks really good in practice.
After missing 14 months, Perron may not feel like his old self until toward the end of the season, but he’ll still be able to contribute and my guess is that it won’t take him very long. Hitchcock plans to play him on a line with Patrik Berglund and Chris Stewart and play him regular minutes, so that will speed up progression.
JEFF GORDON
Fans need to temper their expectations for David. He’s accumulated a lot of rust. It may take him a while to let it loose and play with his usual abandon. The Penguins were very deliberate with Sidney Crosby because fans expected him to play at such a high level upon his return. Pittsburgh realized the No. 1 player in the game couldn’t just ease back in. Perron, on the other hand, should be able to feel his way back to old scoring-line form.
TOM TIMMERMANN
It will take a few weeks to get back to speed, though if he were to spend a week doing rehab in Peoria, it would eliminate some of the awkward moments at Scottrade Center. This won’t rule out some occasional flashes of brilliance, which he could do as soon as his first game back. But to get the well-rounded, full-fledged game you’d like to see from Perron, he’ll need some time. All the practice in the world can’t get you ready for the realities of an NHL game.
KEVIN WHEELER (Host of “Sports Open Line” on KMOX)
I can’t say for sure but I would imagine it’ll take a while. I don’t think we can go by the Sidney Crosby model. The Kid has 11 points in 6 games since returning from a 10-month layoff due to post-concussion symptoms but I don’t think it’s fair to assume Perron jumps right in and starts producing.
A better bet would be to guess that he’ll need several weeks, maybe a month, to get his legs underneath him and truly be back to where he was before. Even that might end up being optimistic.
Early on the most likely area he could impact would be the power play. His creativity and tenacity on the puck would be tremendous assets there but it might make sense to limit his regular minutes, at least initially. That said, all we can really do is guess. There are no certainties with post-concussion recovery.
ANDY STRICKLAND (TrueHockey.com, KFNS)
It’s hard to say whether it will take one game, one week, or one month for David Perron to return to form. He’s missed over a year of hockey and there’s going to be an adjustment period to getting his timing back and playing at the NHL pace. He’ll also be playing with Chris Stewart, a player he’s never played with, along with a new head coach in Ken Hitchcock.
The mental challenge may be the biggest hurdle for Perron to overcome. How assertive will he be in engaging in contact is something I think everyone will pay close attention to. It’s probably best for Hitchcock to play the heck out of him on the power play where he’ll have more time and space and a lot less hesitation in his game.
Sidney Crosby is one of the best players ever so comparing his situation to Perron’s is a stretch. Pierre-Marc Bouchard missed over a year in Minnesota and is probably a better example to use. It took Bouchard some time to get going offensively but every player is different. The bottom line is the Blues are a much better team with Perron in the lineup and no matter how long it takes him to regain his form his presence alone makes the Blues instantly better.
