David Savard hasn’t dreamed of the numerical advantage for a long time. Proof that the role of the defender who will compete in his 800e regular NHL game Thursday, against the Kings, has changed a lot in 15 years.
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“I came into the league playing on the power play. I’ve come a long way from that! said the former fourth-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday after the Canadian’s practice. It’s part of the exchanges, the team changes, I had to modify my role and stand out to stay in the lineup every night.
In 799 games, Savard hit the target 53 times and collected a total of 227 points. When he was younger, he had an offensive touch, as evidenced by his 77 points in 64 games with the Moncton Wildcats in his last season in the QMJHL. But the years have passed and the 33-year-old Quebecer is now recognized for his shot-blocking skills.
“If someone had told me several years ago that I was going to go there, I might not have believed it. It’s fun to be able to help the team and I’m going to try to do it for as long as possible,” he said.
Photo BEN PELOSSE
Dissatisfied
However, Savard admitted to not being satisfied with his start to the season. In four games, he has the worst differential on the club, at -5, and he has already had two partners on the blue line, Lane Hutson, whom he would have liked to assist better, and Arber Xhekaj.
And with the possible entry of Jayden Struble, who is ready to return to the game after suffering a lower-body injury before the campaign opened, the duos could be shaken up again.
“I don’t think I played my best matches and they [les entraîneurs] tried to mix things up. […] I haven’t always made the right decisions, sometimes I’m not in the right place,” Savard self-assessed.
Less used
The Saint-Hyacinthe native also saw his ice time decrease, going from an average of 20min14s per game in 2023-2024 to 16min24s since the start of the current calendar. Also a consequence of young people accepting more responsibilities.
“I have a lot of confidence in him, not just what he does on the ice, but what he does on the bench, in the room, but we have to be careful not to overload him to have the best version of him,” assured head coach Martin St-Louis.
The alarm signal
But Savard is far from being the only one responsible for the defensive shortcomings of CH, which, as colleague Jonathan Bernier demonstrated, is among the worst teams in the NHL, particularly for shots allowed from the slot (13.5 per match).
“It starts in the offensive zone when all five players have to react to a turnover,” Matheson analyzed. We need an alarm signal that reminds us that we are now in defense mode, even if we are not in our territory. The sooner this alarm is heard, the more success we will experience.”
