
6 IN 6 FOR CAUFIELD
COLE IN THE CLUTCH#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/HpPh2wqSMr
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 20, 2024
But for some time now, it’s been more difficult for the American, especially since the arrival of Patrik Laine.
In Laine’s 24 games, Caufield has only scored five goals… And since Laine returned from his illness in early January, Caufield has only two goals.
In Renaud Lavoie’s daily segment on BPM Sports, he talked (among other things) about Caufield’s slump.
During his segment, Max Lalonde actually asked Lavoie if it was a coincidence that Caufield was more dangerous when Laine wasn’t around.
In response, the renowned insider specified that at five-on-five, there’s no difference, as they do not play together and Laine does not take minutes away from CC13.
However, he added that on the power play, it’s completely different, as Caufield has been switched to a different position with Laine’s arrival.
Caufield’s contribution on the power play at the start of the season was significant (4 power play goals in his first 10 games). He actually had seven goals on the power play before the Finn played his first game with the Canadiens.
But since Patrik Laine’s return to play on December 3, Caufield has not scored a single time on the power play.
In fact, it’s even worse than that, Caufield hasn’t scored in that situation since November 27…
He is not playing in the same position, he is shooting less often, and therefore he doesn’t have as many chances as he did at the beginning of the season.
It’s not crazy, because the Canadiens are too predictable. But personally, I think maybe we should consider separating the two sharpshooters on the first power play unit.
Going by merit, Laine should logically be moved down to the second unit. Putting Dach in his place could not only help Dach get back on track (even if he doesn’t deserve it), but it would also ensure having an excellent scorer on each unit.
With Demidov’s arrival next season, we will need to make room for him on the first power play eventually, as he will be a key player. Until then, we need to make changes or significantly practice the power play.
Let’s see what Martin St-Louis has in mind for the rest of the season.
In Brief
– Bob Hartley believes that Dach simply is not a center player.
“Kirby Dach n’est pas un joueur de centre!”
Bob Hartley thinks the Canadiens need to find someone else for the second center position… pic.twitter.com/Fn1xSHu1wl
— BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) February 4, 2025
– The Flyers will clearly want to bounce back tonight.
Flyers tonight will try and avoid becoming just the sixth NHL team to get shut out at least four times in a row. Last time that happened was the 1967-68 Oakland Seals.
The record, by the way, is 8 times set by the 1928-29 Chicago Blackhawks.
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzNHL) February 4, 2025
– A must read.
Should we extend David Savard? (@jic_tvasports) https://t.co/N0tAt2M4cJ
— TVA Sports (@TVASports) February 4, 2025