Hockey

In pictures: it’s amazing how much David Savard looked like a coach to the Habs last year
Félix Forget
In pictures: it’s amazing how much David Savard looked like a coach to the Habs last year
Credit: Getty Images

David Savard announced his retirement at the end of last season. The 34-year-old defenseman enjoyed a long career, during which he played a physically demanding style of hockey.The game went fast for him in his final moments on the Bettman circuit, but Savard's loss should not be underestimated. He was still an important player (especially on the power play), and an important veteran in the dressing room. And that's exactly what we see in the latest episode of The Rebuild.In this one, we see a sequence between two periods where the club wants to make adjustments on the power play… and instead of a coach, it's Savard who leads the discussion at that level.He really, really looks like a coach.

It's also very interesting to see Kaiden Guhle, a young defenseman who's part of the club's future, explain how much he's learned from it all over the years. It all went fast for him at first, of course, but guys like Savard helped him get involved in these conversations,and that's something Martin St-Louis is delighted about, as he knows how important it is for players to be able to “coach” themselves. Inthis respect, losing a guy like Savard could hurt the Habs more than you think. It's not an impact that can be measured in numbers, but it has a very real impact on what happens on the ice.It will now be up to the team's young defensemen to pick up the torch and “replace” Savard's contribution at this level.

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