The St. Louis Blues are trying to turn their season around early, so they've decided to make a few changes to the roster ahead of their matchup against the Buffalo Sabres. It looks like Jordan Kyrou will be a healthy scratch for the first time since 2017, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.
“As mentioned a few minutes ago with the boys, I believe the Blues are scratching Jordan Kyrou and Oskar Sundqvist tonight in Buffalo,” Pagnotta wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The decision came after the Blues lost 6-1 to the Washington Capitals. Head coach Jim Montgomery has decided to sit not only Kyrou, but Sundqvist as well. The Blues will be inserting Alexandre Texier, Mathieu Joseph, and Matthew Kessel into the lineup, while Sundqvist and Logan Mailloux are also coming out.
It's a surprise to see that Kyrou is being benched, especially since he's led the Blues in goals the past three seasons. This season, he has four goals and eight points, and a minus-8 rating. He hasn't played to the level that Montgomery has wanted him to, and he was asked about a week about what Kyrou needed to do to be the best player on the floor for the team.
“Well, I think he’s shooting the puck great this year,” Montgomery said. “He’s beat goalies clean without screens three or four times. But for Jordan, he’s electric offensively and his feet create anxiety for the other team. When he’s playing like that, and he’s stripping pucks from behind, that’s when he’s really noticeable, and you see a multitude of scoring chances.”
Since then, Kyrou hasn't scored any points and has a minus-1 rating with seven shots on goal. He's averaging 15:10 of ice time during that span, which is eighth among forwards.
It's uncertain how long Kyrou will be out of the lineup for the Blues, and the hope is that he can improve his play when he returns on the ice.
