Andrew Peeke, Erik Gudbranson blocking out path to future success for Columbus Blue Jackets
The risk in blocking shots in hockey is getting drilled with a frozen puck in spots that will cause even the toughest players to crumple in agony or hobble to the bench.
The reward, other than a handsome NHL paycheck, is the sound of ‘atta boys’ from the bench and sticks clacking the boards.
“I don’t really bruise much,” said Erik Gudbranson, one of the Blue Jackets’ top shot-blockers. “I mean, they still hurt. I’ve been lucky. I mean, knock on wood, I haven’t really taken any in the face or anything like that …”
Gudbranson, 31, has played long enough to know that merely saying those words aloud, “knock on wood,” isn’t enough. Seated at his stall in the Blue Jackets’ locker room, he quickly scanned for the nearest wooden object and gave it a hearty knock.
The night before, during the first period of the Blue Jackets’ 5-4 overtime loss Tuesday in Pittsburgh, one of Gudbranson’s hands was rendered useless after it was struck.
“It just hit me in a weird spot,” he said. “It hit me on a nerve and it just, like, hit the ‘off’ button on my hand for 10 minutes. That was something, but now it feels normal.”
Peeke, Gudbranson leading Columbus Blue Jackets' block party
As Gudbranson was out with his hand issue, rookie defenseman Nick Blankenburg was struck with a glancing blow that left him rubbing his chin.
Blankenburg didn’t miss a shift and later took another shot up high. Gudbranson finished the game after the feeling in his hand returned. Each banged his stick in approval in the third, when rookie Kirill Marchenko struggled to leave the ice after blocking a shot with his knee to keep it 4-4.
“Some of them sting, sure, but it’s also a ‘hurts so good,’ kind of thing,” Gudbranson said. “When you come back to the bench and it’s a big block, you’re getting stick taps from the boys and it just feels good. For a guy who doesn’t score too many goals, to get the bench fired up that way is just great.”
Andrew Peeke knows the feeling.
Peeke, 24, is playing his second full NHL season and ranks fourth in the league over the past two years in blocked shots (312). A two-way force at Notre Dame, Peeke has changed his game by using his size (6 feet 3, 210 pounds) for physical confrontations and blocking shots.
He’s first on the Blue Jackets in blocks, eighth in the NHL with 143 and, along with Gudbranson, has picked up the pace since former teammate Vladislav Gavrikov was dealt to the Los Angeles Kings last week.
“It’s something I take pride in,” Peeke said. “It gets the boys fired up. Anytime someone else blocks a shot, I always give stick taps on the bench, so it’s something that’s part of my identity and part of my role. I enjoy that aspect of it and I know Guddy does too. It’s just the roles we play, so we enjoy it.”
The coaching staff does, too.
“They’re giving it,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. “You get 28 blocked shots (in Pittsburgh) in a road game like that, guys are eating it left and right … blocking 14 or 15 in the first period. (That’s) a really good sign these guys are putting it in the effort.”
Columbus Blue Jackets proudly bearing marks of sacrifice
Another hallmark are the bruises, which can sometimes appear in the exact size and shape of the puck.
Look closely at some and you can even see a tiny diamond-shaped pattern that rings the edge of a puck for improved grip. Those sting the most. They’re also badges of honor, resembling the look of “cupping” therapy minus the benefits.
The ugliest that Peeke has even spotted on his own body was last season, after a rocket by Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin slammed into his backside.
“That one left a mark,” Peeke said. “I over-anticipated and the pass went slower than I thought, so I was turned around. I’m actually kind of lucky it got me where it did. It could’ve been way worse. That one didn’t look too good for a couple weeks, but … you just ice it up and get ready for the next one.”
Players try to limit the damage. There are techniques to help prevent serious injury and they know what depths are best or worst to stand. Defensemen also wear thick skate guards and some, like Gudbranson, stuff extra padding into their shin pads and pants.
Nothing can cover it all, of course, and improved stick technology has pushed even some wrist shots above 90 mph.
"Everybody goes, ‘Well, you’ve got gear on,’" Larsen said, smirking. "Well, I welcome anybody to go put some gear on and let somebody tee off one-timers on you and see if that gear really helps you. That commitment isn't easy ... and to keep eating them over and over? That’s a mindset and a skillset not a lot of guys want to do.”
Columbus Blue Jackets sacrificing for wins in frustrating season
It’s a mindset the Blue Jackets have adopted despite an extensive injury report that’s contributed to them sinking to last in the NHL.
In 11 games since Gavrikov was first scratched for injury prevention, they’ve averaged 18 blocked shots in 11 games. The Jackets have also gotten nearly three blocks per game from Peeke (2.9) and Gudbranson (2.7).
An understandable during such a trying season is why?
Gudbranson offers two reasons. The first is they’re hockey players and they do it out of habit. The second holds a lot of importance in Columbus.
“We’re in the process of building something,” Gudbranson said. “We’re going to talk about this year, hopefully, in the next few years and we’re going to be in a different place and have a different conversation. (Sacrificing now) is just one of those things you have to do, because it’s harder to win in this league than it is to lose … and it’s going to hurt when we’re winning too. So, get used to it now.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets getting blocks from Peeke, Gudbranson
