Former coach explains why Kirby Dach exploded offensively

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Jeff Drouin
November 14, 2022 (6:06 PM)

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Since being paired on the wing of the first trio with the inseparable Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach has quickly become the perfect third musketeer for the trio.

It's not just him who benefits from his trio mates, but the other way around, as Caufield and Suzuki can play their game in their own way, thanks to Dach bringing his on-ice smarts, game vision and big frame to complement the other two.

CH's #77 brings something essential to this trio to make them better and it makes all the difference.

Speaking of which, Bob Hartley has a good idea of what accounts for the click in Dach's game and he explained it very clearly on BPM Sports this morning.

"When you think the game too much, you forget to play it. While you're thinking, the game is going on and instead of being half a second ahead of the game, you're always picking yourself up behind the game. What you thought, it's already too late, is behind you. You see right now, Dach complements Caufield and Suzuki beautifully. He's skating, he's free, he's feeling good. And that's so important to being successful." - Bob Hartley

Clearly, the early successes when he arrived on the trio gave him renewed confidence in his game and his offensive skills on the ice, and the rest has had a snowball effect in his game.

The former third overall pick in 2019 no longer thinks about the game, he now plays it and it makes all the difference.

Is he more of a winger than a center?

It's too early to say at this point, but one thing is for sure, being placed on the wing with a talented center like Suzuki has allowed him to focus more on his offensive skills and it's literally unlocked in his case.

Credit: Vincent Fournier, Let's Go Habs & Marqueur