Canadian 3 — Blackhawks 2 | Dach’s revenge, Hughes’ dilemma

(Chicago) Revenge. “Action of reciprocating for an evil that one has received”, says the Larousse.

This action translates differently for everyone. For some, it’s submitting a hostile offer to give a 12-goal scorer six million dollars. For the most ambitious, it is to want to sabotage the high tension lines of Hydro-Quebec and to set fire to the house of an official.

Kirby Dach didn’t go to all that trouble. His revenge he took by scoring a goal in the shootout, then taunting the Blackhawks fans gathered at the United Center. He could well afford it; his goal gave the Canadian a 3-2 victory in the shootout. Enough to ensure everyone’s good humor at the traditional recruits’ dinner on Friday…

What better way to mark his return to his old town? “Maybe to score in overtime! Suggested a visibly relieved Dach after the match. But in shootouts, it’s pretty good. »

Dach’s return to Chicago was expected. After all, a third overall pick, traded three years after being drafted, isn’t trivial. The reporters covering the opposing team were more numerous than usual in the CH locker room after the match.

But Dach was also waiting for this match. Two days earlier, he had admitted that he would put a good amount of money on the board.

“For any traded player, it’s heartbreaking. It changes your life, you have to find a new apartment, you’re uprooted. But I couldn’t be happier to be in Montreal”, explained the hero of the day, after the victory.

The “evil” that he “received”, to refer to our definition at the beginning of the text, what was it? The boos fed during his shootout were part of that, although he was not seen crying in a ball in the locker room either. Listening after his goal, he settled the matter. “I did it a few times in junior, when I was getting booed,” he said.

Boos are superficial. But seeing his team resign so quickly on him, on the other hand, is what can disturb an athlete more, although Dach assures not to take offense. “I see it on the other side, I tell myself rather that Montreal wanted me. I didn’t think too much about the fact that they didn’t want me here anymore. »

Monahan again

These Dach successes bring us back to Sean Monahan, one of the big files for Kent Hughes this winter.

The two are connected because Dach has been having a blast since being moved to the wing. He didn’t get a point on Friday, but with 17 points in 21 games, he’s on pace to smash his personal mark of 26 points in one season. Since receiving his tenure on the wing alongside Nick Suzuki, it’s 14 points in 13 games.

Monahan had two assists in that game and has eight points in his last eight outings, 14 in 21 games this season.

“He’s back to being himself and he’s healthy. His enthusiasm is contagious. It’s such a big acquisition for us,” said Canadian head coach Martin St-Louis. “He really doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. We talk about managing the puck and he’s one of the best for that,” added Samuel Montembeault.

At the start of the season, Dach was seen as the second center of the Canadian, while Monahan was a bit of a joker. Able to play center and wing, but at a level impossible to predict due to his two hip surgeries.

After the first quarter of the season, it is clear that Monahan belongs in the role of second center, a role he would never have occupied if Dach had been as effective there as we have seen for a while. month.

Except that as a player at the end of the contract, Monahan was the perfect candidate for a transaction within a club expected in the basement. However, the CH is in the process of amassing 90 points, a rhythm which allows to be in the race for the series. Such a race would be formative for the rookies, and exchanging Monahan would be a blow for these players who give everything to prove those who eliminated them in September.

By keeping Monahan beyond his current contract, the Habs would also make sure to give time to Filip Mesar and Owen Beck, his two best prospects at center, who will be 19 at the next camp.

It’s clear why Monahan would fit in well in the medium term, but with his performances it’s just as clear that Hughes will be receiving some hard-to-ignore offers for No. 91.

Knowing that losing Monahan would help Montreal move up the standings, and therefore move closer to a top-5 pick in a talent-packed 2023 draft, we can see the dilemma looming in front of Hughes over the next few months.

Up: Samuel Montembeault

Technically, it’s not “up”, because it was already going pretty well. His save against Max Domi, on a return from the band, was beautiful to see. Here it is at 6^e rank in the NHL with a save percentage of .924.

Down: Jake Evans

He’s down offensively, and he’s only won 27% of his faceoffs (3 for 11). In his defense, he’s had seven of his 11 faceoffs against Jonathan Toews, the Greek god of faceoffs.

Number of the match: 4: 03

Cole Caufield spent 4 min 3 s on the ice during overtime. The time out following the Blackhawks penalty allowed him to catch his breath.

In details

A check that makes people talk

Jason Dickinson isn’t afraid to punch. The Blackhawks striker announced his colors by hitting Kaiden Guhle hard at the start of the match, but his shot against Juraj Slafkovsky, in the third period, did not pass with the Canadian. At the subsequent face-off, Josh Anderson did not hesitate to express his remonstrances to Dickinson, remonstrances which he delivered to us in a censored version in the locker room. “We reviewed the sequence in slow motion and he hit him a little in the head. I don’t know if the NHL will look into this. I just wanted to defend a teammate, a youngster,” Anderson said. It’s been a few times now that Slafkovsky has been tackled hard. The young man will have to protect himself better, and knowing that he was replaced in the fourth line after only one game in the second, it will be interesting to see if the management will consider giving him a few games in Laval to perfect his learning. .

A similar error

After being generous for a few games, the Habs allowed only three goals in two games during and on this short trip, including only two goals at even strength. However, there is a similar pattern in both goals. In Columbus, Joel Armia and Josh Anderson were a bit off to help Mike Matheson, which contributed to his turnaround. This time, Christian Dvorak and Evgenii Dadonov had gone straight ahead in anticipation of Brendan Gallagher’s pass, so when the latter missed his clearance, the two attackers were too far to cover Caleb Jones, the author of the goal. However, we can wonder about the chances of success of the pass that Gallagher tried, via the middle of the defensive zone.

Never too late to do well

Casually, Jarred Tinordi rolls his bump. The former Canadiens first-round pick is a permanent member of the Blackhawks defense this season, having appeared in all 20 of his team’s games so far. “He’s a physical force and he set the tone in the last game by applying a big check,” explained Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson before the game. He circulates the puck well and hones his craft every day. Of course, by moving from the Rangers to the Blackhawks via waivers in October, the giant defender ended up in a less talented formation, therefore easier to break through. He is now approaching his career mark of 28 games played in a season. Errors like the one on Joel Edmundson’s goal, where he lost his position against the CH defender, however, remind us that he has his limits.

They said