What is the solution to revive Kirby Dach? The 23-year-old is having a very difficult start to the campaign after missing almost the entire 2023-2024 season due to a serious knee injury.
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Until now, Martin St-Louis has tried to level everything from the top. Dach, who was seen primarily as a center player when he arrived in Montreal, was moved to the wing of the first unit along with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.
However, results are slow to appear on the ice. So much so that Dach’s production is only five points in 14 games, with the worst differential in the entire National Hockey League (NHL) at -13.
For TVA Sports channel informant Renaud Lavoie, it is perhaps time to think about giving lesser responsibilities to the big number 77 in order to revive it.
“To get through this, he will have to play on a third line,” he said during his segment on BPM Sports on Friday. It’s not against Kirby Dach, but in the situation we are currently in. Kirby Dach cannot play on a first line, Kirby Dach cannot play on a second line.
“For the moment, he gives me the impression of slowing down the team’s first line.”
According to Lavoie, Dach can no longer have the responsibility of facing the best opposing lines night after night in the current situation. To regain his confidence, Martin St-Louis will have to make his life easier
“Unfortunately, he will have to follow the “Joel Armia” treatment for a little while. He will have to assert himself elsewhere. Not that we want to hide it, but he will play against players who are a little more permissive,” added Lavoie.
Will Martin St-Louis consider this strategy? To be continued…
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