It went unnoticed, but in the final minutes of last night's game against Patrick Roy and the New York Islanders, young Kapanen found himself on the Canadiens' second line, alongside Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook.
Some will say it was about time!
This is a nice promotion from head coach Martin St-Louis, but more importantly, it's a well-earned one for the young player.
I have a feeling that the following numbers are going to change quite rapidly in the upcoming games:
Both seem to deserve more minutes.
It will be interesting to see if young Kapanen can revitalize the second line (assuming this combination remains intact for the next game), as the Kirby Dach line has, as you know, had a more difficult start to the season.
And considering that Dach is coming off a major injury, that's perfectly understandable.
Dach, 23 years old, has 1 point in 6 games this season, with a negative plus-minus of -8, while Alex Newhook, also 23, has 1 point in 6 games with a negative plus-minus of -7.
Could Oliver Kapanen be the spark needed to reignite Martin St-Louis' second line?
If the second line starts to click, and the first line continues scoring key goals at the right moments, it could make a big difference for the Canadiens.
POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 20 | 784 ANSWERS Oliver Kapanen Earns Well Deserved Promotion from Martin St-Louis and the Canadiens Who do you think should play on the second line with Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook? | ||
Oliver Kapanen | 339 | 43.2 % |
Emil Heineman | 311 | 39.7 % |
Joel Armia | 92 | 11.7 % |
Other | 42 | 5.4 % |
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