The Kirby Dach Era Has Begun
The Kirby Dach era has begun. It began with a big stinky loss at home which felt worse on the heels of the Bears loss, but the Blackhawks new toy did pretty well for himself in his first NHL game at 18 years-old. It’s not a secret that the Blackhawks want Kirby Dach to make the team and help the team in the 2019-20 season. There were probably guys available at the 3rd overall pick with a higher ceiling, but they would’ve taken longer than Dach to get to the NHL. There were many reasons why Dach made sense for the Blackhawks, but being 6’4 200lbs, and pretty smart…meaning…close to NHL-ready was definitely one of them and nobody will convince me otherwise.
Colliton and company threw Dach right into the fire. No sheltered minutes. No low expectations. Here’s Patrick Kane to your right, here’s the center position, here’s a matchup against Alex Ovechkin, go out there and make hay, kid. And you know what…he did okay. It is an UNBELIEVABLY hard jump to go from playing in the WHL to NHL, but Kirby Dach didn’t look out of place and at times he looked like he could be an asset to the Blackhawks this year. Flashes.
Now, the Blackhawks coaching staff needs to figure out how to best use him because while playing with Patrick Kane is probably a great way for a young offensive player to break into the league, it’s going to be a drain on 88 if Dach is playing like a bambi out there. If Kane can’t maximize his shifts because he’s playing with a teenager then that isn’t good for anyone. Not for Dach, not for Kane, and not for the Blackhawks playoff chances. The Blackhawks have been trying to figure out their lines for the better part of this season and so far they haven’t found a combination that works. Luckily Dach gives them some more options because as an 18 year-old he’s actually pretty responsible defensively. He did a pretty good job in his own end, he uses his body and good stick to win battles and protect pucks. He might not do the little things consistently enough at this point to yolk him to Kane at this point, but he’s probably good enough to help you in your top 9. So with that said, here is how I would deploy the Blackhawks lines next time out.
Saad-Toews-Kubalik
Saad and Kubalik have been absolutely awesome with Kampf as their center. That line has been good defensively and they’re putting pucks in the back of the net. Toews on the other hand…hasn’t been what we saw last year. He could use some juice on his wings. Some guys who can win pucks and then fire them home. Play a heavy game and be smart. I am not saying that Kubalik is Hossa, but he has some Hossa in him. He can rifle the puck and isn’t shy about letting it fly. Saad and Toews obviously have that history too. Kubalik and Saad have earned a bigger opportunity and playing with Toews is just that. It could be a dominant line at both ends of the ice.
Debrincat-Strome-Kane
Everyone wants. Those three want it. Let the super friends go out there and wheel and do their thing. Make them pinky swear they’ll play well defensively, forecheck, control pucks and win pucks back if they turn it over. If Kane was ever going to recreate his magic years he had with Panarin, Debrincat is the guy to do it with. Strome needs to play through the middle a bit more a la Anisimov, but he’s so good at finding his wingers that getting him the puck below the line will help too. Have some fun, let them play, light it up. Let’s go.
Shaw-Kampf-Dach
In theory this line would still be good defensively as well. I like the idea of breaking Dach in at wing while he learns on the job defensively and gets better at draws. All three of the guys on this line are capable face-off guys. The Hawks can have Shaw, Kampf, or Dach step in depending on where the draw is on the ice to give this group the best chance to win possession. I also like Dach as a winger because he can help on the forecheck if he’s in there early with his long reach and good stick. That could be a winning combination. Shaw retrieves pucks and goes to the net, Dach creates offensively and wouldn’t feel obligated to defer to a guy like Toews or Kane with the puck, and Kampf can you know…keep being David Kampf
Nylander-Carpenter-Caggiula
Nylander has been much better lately. If there are situations that call for it maybe you slide him up into the 3rd line wtih Shaw and Dach to give that group a little more offensive juice. This line as it stands though looks pretty good to me. I really like what Carpenter brings to the table with his draws and competitiveness and Caggiula has the wheels, fire, and skill to contribute offensively as well. It could be a very good line if the effort from Nylander is there consistently. A lot to like about it.
That to me is the best way to max out all of your guys with Dach in the lineup. Playing with Kane is great so long as it doesn’t negatively impact Kane. I am not willing to ride the 18 year-old roller coaster with the best offensive winger in the league. Vegas on Tuesday followed by the Flyers on Thursday will be a great test to see where this team really is. I liked what we saw against the Caps in a loss. Get the PP going a little bit and tighten up defensively so you don’t get Ovi’d and that was a different game. It was an L, but one against a team with Cup aspirations. If the Hawks can compete with them they should be able to compete night in and night out and that’s what we need to be a playoff team.