Hockey

18.2% on the powerplay: The Habs need to make changes
Michaël Petit
18.2% on the powerplay: The Habs need to make changes
Credit: Screenshot/Twitter

If there was one thing Montreal Canadiens fans were really looking forward to seeing this season (newcomers aside), it was powerplay success… You'll understand that there's not much powerplay success so far this season with the massive attack. As of today, the Habs have only an 18.2% success rate with the man-advantage, and that's far from what fans were expecting. Of course, we can't say anything about Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, either at 5-on-5 or on the power play. Lane Hutson has also done a great job so far, with four assists in six games. Zachary Bolduc is one of the newcomers and has had an incredible start to the season. He's also inherited the role of bumper on the first wave of the powerplay and he's made the most of it with two points in that situation. On the other hand, many seem to think that seeing Ivan Demidov on the 2nd wave is a waste rather than a luxury.

On the latest episode of The Starr & D'Amico Show, the two hosts discussed this after a listener left a comment on the subject.

It's not complicated, it's not working right now, changes need to be made and Ivan Demidov is quite possibly the solution.He always creates scoring opportunities every time he touches the puck. He has incredible vision and hands that put opponents to sleep. Why not put him on the first wave? In the most recent series, we've seen him used on the first wave, but he's never had the opportunity to be there this season… I'm willing to believe that the addition of Bolduc since the playoffs has changed things a little. Bolduc or Slafkovsky must be sacrificed for Demidov, but I'd go for Bolduc even if he performs very well. Slaf needs to be a presence in front of the net and Bolduc needs to be in the bumper. By keeping Slaf on the first wave, his presence in front of the net, which is very good, allows the players to be better utilized
Moreover, by putting Demidov on the first wave, he would obviously be on the right flank, which would allow Juraj Slafkovsky to be in front of the net, where he's most useful. Suzuki would return to the bumper, Caufield would stay on the left and Hutson on the point. This would allow for much more circulation and better utilization of the players (especially Slafkovsky, who has no business on the right flank for a number of obvious reasons). It would also allow for a good second wave with Bolduc in the bumper (rather than Dach before his injury, a role in which he is not the most effective). Brendan Gallagher could remain in front of the net, something he does very well. Dach would be on the right flank to feed everyone. Patrik Laine (healthy, of course) would be on the left. Noah Dobson would be the quarterback. I don't know about you, but it makes a lot more sense this way, and changes need to be made anyway.

'Overtime'

– It's such a shame to still see comments like this…

– Very interesting.

– They're comical, them.

– $90M over two years for Kevin Durant, now 37.

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