Blues' David Perron to miss training camp with concussion

The St. Louis Blues will be without winger David Perron, who has been sidelined with a concussion, for training camp and the start of the regular season.

Blues general manager Doug Armstrong made the announcement Wednesday. The Blues open training camp on Sept. 16 and the regular season begins Oct. 8.

Perron has not played since suffering a concussion on Nov. 4 against the San Jose Sharks. He took a blindside hit from Joe Thornton near center ice and missed the final 72 games of the season.

Armstrong said Perron has shown signs of improvement over the summer. His progress "took a big jump a few months ago," when he attempted some light exercises.

The Blues are prepared if Perron can't play. They signed forwards Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner, re-signed winger Matt D'Agostini and added depth with Jonathan Cheechoo.

Meanwhile, Boston Bruins center Marc Savard was interviewed by TSN during his day with the Stanley Cup this week and said he's still having concussion symptoms.

"Mornings have been tough. When I get up in the morning I'm a little foggy sometimes," Savard told TSN.ca. "But as the day wears on I'm pretty good. Hot sun is tough. I try to stay in the shade and stuff like that and pop the odd Advil and it seems to be OK."

Savard was held to 25 games last season because of the after-effects of a blindside hit from Matt Cooke in March 2010 and a lesser hit by Matt Hunwick during the 2010-11 season.

"It's obviously been a long road for me," Savard said. "I'm still suffering with a lot of daily issues, right now it's been a tough go. I'm just trying to get through and not worry about hockey right now, just worry about my health because I have three young kids and they're important to me."