It has been a rather successful home stand so far for the Montreal Canadiens. With a 3-2 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks on Monday night, they improved to 3-1-0 in this run of games at the Bell Centre. It was far from perfect, as two separate Habs teams seemed to show up for stretches of that game – one that looked dominant offensively, and another that couldn’t get the puck into the offensive zone to save their lives. The question of how they can get the good version of themselves to show up for 60 minutes still remains despite the win.
Then there’s the question of what to do with Kirby Dach, which seems to be persistent in every game that they play.
Dostal does whatever he's doing here… Slafkovsky gets it to Dach, and we're tied up at two. Boy did Dach need something like this to boost his confidence.
— Matt Drake (@drakemt.bsky.social) December 9, 2024 at 9:52 PM
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We have to be honest about this goal – it was a stroke of luck with Lukas Dostal’s ill-advised venture out of his net. That said, there’s something to be said for being in the right place at the right time, which both Dach and Juraj Slafkovsky were. They needed a bounce, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Habs, as this tied the game and ultimately allowed them to win in the shootout.
Hopefully, this fortuitous goal provides a much-needed boost of confidence, and kick starts some better play from Dach. It seemed to for a time against the Ducks, but he still had some highly questionable decisions with the puck both before and after that goal went in. His no-look backhand pass in the first period led directly to a Troy Terry goal for the Ducks, and a different giveaway in the third led to Dach taking a penalty trying to paper over his own mistake.
Martin St-Louis looked visibly exasperated on the bench after the first giveaway, and it’s easy to understand why. He would probably love to see more responsible play with the puck in lieu of the goal, and he’s tried just about every top-six configuration to help Dach play better. Nothing seems to be working, and St-Louis is basically out of options at this point. They didn’t acquire him to be a bottom-six player, but there are guys down there who are playing like they deserve his spot in the lineup more than he does.
Maybe he needs to be scratched for a game or two. It feels harsh, but with the amount of time he spent on the shelf, perhaps taking a step back and watching from the press box for a game or two could be the quick reset that he needs. Despite last night’s goal, he’s struggling in a big way right now, and they have to figure out a way to get him back on track.
The alternative is to keep letting him try to play his way out of it, and it doesn’t seem like that is going to happen on its own.
Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, also available wherever you get your podcasts. We’ll be back after the last game of the home stand this Thursday night, when the Habs will take on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
