Luckily for tank nation, the sting of the Montreal Canadiens win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night was soothed by some of the other results around the league. In particular, the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3 rout of the Florida Panthers stands out as a welcome counter to the two points the Habs earned in their own win.
Another welcome distraction was the return of Kirby Dach to the Habs’ lineup, with him managing to look like he took a week off at most.
Dach last played on February 14 against the Chicago Blackhawks, and for a while it seemed unclear if he’d even be back before the end of the season. The Habs looked like a different team with him on the ice, and he didn’t waste any time getting involved and opening the scoring for his team in the first period.
The Dach-tor is back pic.twitter.com/02XaH7QTMW
— Matt Drake (@DrakeMT) March 21, 2023
His impact went beyond the scoresheet as well, with his physical play in the offensive zone being surprisingly pronounced for a player that had been on the shelf for over a month. In the dying minutes of the game, with the Habs defending a one-goal lead, Dach was seen on multiple occasions taking the puck into the corner and holding it there against an onslaught of Lightning forwards trying to dig it out and get their last-ditch effort going.
Putting him back on Nick Suzuki’s wing, at least for his first game back, was likely a wise decision. They’ve shown chemistry in the past, and this was a good way to reintegrate Dach into the lineup without the added responsibility of playing in the middle. His long-term position with the club may be in the middle, but knowing they have the flexibility to use him on the wing when the need arises is a significant luxury.
That draft-day trade seems to look better the more we see of Dach in the lineup, and that he was able to step back into said lineup without missing a beat is great news for the rebuild.
Bottom Six Minutes!
We are back on Megaphone, as EOTP’s podcast crew have joined the Fans First Sports Network. Regular uploads will resume to the EOTP podcast channel, but I’ll be continuing to upload to the temporary BSM channel in the interim until our migration is complete.
In this episode, I’m sure you’ll be shocked that I have some words for the officials, and their no-call for Mikhail Sergachev’s slew-foot on Josh Anderson at the end of the game. Also, words on Dach, and the brilliance of Samuel Montembeault. Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, and don’t forget to subscribe on your preferred platform, as we’ll have a lot more content coming up with the new network.
