After two grueling months of playoff hockey, the finale is set: St. Louis and Boston will face off once more in a Game 7 Wednesday evening to determine whose names will be forever etched on the Stanley Cup.

The Blues had a chance to win at home Sunday, but Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask blocked nearly everything thrown at him. It was a dominant performance among many in these playoffs, making him a favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, the award for playoff MVP as selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

While Blues players like Ryan O'Reilly and Alex Pietrangelo and Bruins forwards like Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron have been mentioned in the conversation for the award, there's been limited conversation about Torey Krug. The former MSU hockey captain and Bruins defenseman's stellar performance has been key to his team's run for the Cup.

How Torey Krug has stood out in the 2019 NHL Playoffs

Krug's effectiveness on offense hasn't come at the expense of his role as a defenseman. At 5-foot-9, he's not been afraid to throw big hits to keep forwards away from the net (see Game 1 of the Finals for starters).

“I’ve had to make myself unique, and that swagger, hopefully it bleeds through our locker room and the rest of our lineup," Krug told the Boston Herald. "That’s what I bring to the table. I’ll always need it and I’ll always have it.”

Krug has 18 points in 23 games this postseason, including a goal and three assists in his team's 7-2 route in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals. The four points in that game were the most ever by a Bruins player in a championship series.

Both of his goals this postseason came on the power play, contributing to the 12 of 18 points he put on the board during a man advantage. As Matt Vatour of Mass Live wrote, Krug has been the "catalyst" for his team on the power play, noting that he helped facilitate four of the Bruins' seven goals in Game 3 under those circumstances.

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Krug leads all defenseman in scoring in the playoffs and is third on the Bruins, behind wingers David Pastrnak (19 points) and Brad Marchand (23 points). All but one skater for the Bruins has scored a goal for the Bruins in these playoffs.

He's played in just over 510 minutes in these playoffs, averaging about 22 minutes a night. Fellow defenseman Charlie McAvoy leads Bruins players with 527 minutes played, while Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo leads all players with 643 minutes played.

How Torey Krug's playoffs compare to the last defenseman to win a Conn Smythe

Back in 2015, Duncan Keith was the unanimous choice for the Conn Smythe after the Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lighting. Keith had 21 points in 23 games that year. Two of Keith's three playoff goals were series-clinchers, including the game-winning goal in the Finals. None of Krug's goals have been game-winners.

Five of Keith's 21 points were scored on the power play, but the Blackhawks did not rely on the man advantage for scoring as much as the Bruins have in 2019. This year, Boston has scored more than 30% of their goals on the power play, compared to less than 18% by Chicago in 2015.

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Keith's plus/minus rating of 16 also made him stand apart that postseason. For Krug's part, he has a rating of 5 compared to Boston captain Zdeno Chara, who leads all players with 12.

Keith also logged more minutes than any other skater that postseason, becoming just the fourth player since 1998 to play more than 700 minutes. Drew Doughty (2014), Chris Pronger (2006) and Nicklas Lidstrom (2002) were the others. ​

All this being said, no playoffs are created equal. Need I remind you of all the controversy we've seen this year?

6 Michigan State players have won the Stanley Cup

Torey Krug would become the seventh Spartan to lift Lord Stanley if the Bruins can capitalize at home on Wednesday evening. Keith has won the trophy three times and is the only one to ever have been awarded the Conn Smythe.

2015 — Duncan Keith (Chicago)

2013 — Duncan Keith (Chicago)

2010 — Duncan Keith (Chicago)

2007 — Drew Miller (Anaheim)

2006 — Rod Brind'Amour (Carolina)

1995 — Danton Cole (New Jersey)

1990 — Joe Murphy (Edmonton)

1990 — Craig Simpson (Edmonton)

1988 — Craig Simpson (Edmonton)

Nate Chute is a producer with the USA Today Network. Follow him on Twitter at @nchute.