Scott Perunovich has strong debut in Islanders win: really good game

A year ago, it was a Nov.24 match in Ottawa that immutably changed the season for the Islanders, when Adam Pelech and Sebastian Aho both got hurt, trimming the Isles down to four defenseman for an eventual win over the Senators.That triggered a move to bring in Mike Reilly off waivers, and when Ryan Pulock joined the injured list a couple weeks later, Lou Lamoriello did not waste time in trading for Robert Bortuzzo from the Blues.The sequence of events over the last week, with Noah Dobson getting hurt, the Islanders bringing in Tony DeAngelo, then Pulock joining Dobson on the injured list only for Lamoriello to trade for another Blues defenseman — Scott Perunovich — feels awfully similar.And in his first game for the Islanders on Tuesday night, Perunovich showed how he can help coach Patrick Roy’s crew, displaying some offensive skill and notching a secondary assist in a 5-2 win over the Avalanche.“He played a really good game for us and that’s what I wanted him to do,” Roy said of Perunovich, who skated 17:42 on the night, mostly with Adam Pelech.

“I said [to him] this morning, ‘Stop being nervous.Just go out there and play and enjoy the game.’ It’s his first with the Islanders, [he] deserves to have fun.”Perunovich, sporting a new haircut, said afterward that though the past 36 hours had been a lot to take in, he felt good about how the night had gone.“I think it was a slow start for me, but my teammates were helping me the entire game with systems and questions,” he said.

“My partner took real good care of me tonight, too.So it’s kind of a learning adjustment, but I’m feeling good.

Every day just keep getting better.”It’s safe to say that Perunovich, the 2020 Hobey Baker Award winner and a former second-round pick, never quite reached his full potential with the Blues, where he was unable to become a lineup regular despite a solid offensive skill set.Earlier in the day, Perunovich described himself as surprised to be traded,...

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Publisher: New York Post

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