Habs’ Drouin has grown into role as centreman
Experience in Montreal has helped him feel more comfortable in faceoff circle
TORONTO There are still nights — one of them was Thursday in Detroit — when Jonathan Drouin loses twice as many faceoffs as he wins.
And there are still nights when Drouin’s defensive shortcomings contribute to a plus/minus figure that is among the worst in the NHL.
But those nights aren’t as frequent as they were in the first half of the season and the Canadiens will go into training camp next fall with Drouin pencilled in as a centre.
Drouin saw some spot duty at centre when he was with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he struggled early in the season. Coach Claude Julien said he’s seen improvement since then and Drouin was asked if he was a better player today.
“Definitely, 100 per cent,” Drouin said after the Canadiens practice in preparation for Saturday’s season finale against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“Just playing this position now, it was different at the beginning, but I feel comfortable on faceoffs and playing in the defensive zone. As a centreman, I’ve gotten back to less thinking. The first couple months, you’re just thinking too much. Asking yourself: ‘Am I in the right place? Did I do the right thing ?’ As I got used to it, it became easier.”
For most of the season, Drouin’s success rate in the faceoff circle hovered around 40 per cent. There was a stretch last month when he was winning faceoffs at a 60 per cent clip and his average for the season is close to 43 per cent.
“I wish there was some easy answers,” Drouin said when asked about the improvement. “I tweaked a few things. Some nights it goes well and some nights it goes bad, but I’m definitely happy with the way the season ended. Drouin said experience helped. “In the beginning, you’re standing against those guys and you’re not clueless, but you don’t know them,” Drouin said. “After you’ve seen a guy for a few times, you get an idea what he likes to do. You look at video and it’s easier when you saw the guy the week before and that experience is fresh in your mind.
“I know I can play this position,” Drouin said. “I can skate with centres in this league. I can move my feet, move the puck. There are some areas that need to get better.”
There were questions about his future earlier this year when general manager Marc Bergevin suggested, in an ideal world, Drouin might be better suited to playing on the wing.
Julien was asked whether that comment might have led Drouin to kick his game up a notch.
“I don’t know but, if it did, that’s great,” Julien said. “But, at the same time when Marc said ‘in an ideal world,’ it doesn’t mean it’s an ideal world. We like the fact he’s had a whole year to play there, where he’s played before in junior hockey, and he’s learned a lot. So we have some great options next year.
“If we need him at centre, he’s a centre,” Julien said. “If we have too many centres and we need him on the wing, we know he can play there. We’re not trying to predict. But what’s he’s done is take a lot of pride in his work. He’s progressed a lot throughout the year and we’ve seen him on the penalty kill and important faceoffs where he’s gotten better. At the same time, late in the game he realizes what he has to do first, before scoring into an empty net. He’s shown some maturity in his game.”
Given the Canadiens’ recent history, the idea of having too many centres is a stretch, which is why Drouin will be in the middle of things again next season.
As a centreman, I’ve gotten back to less thinking. The first couple months, you’re just thinking too much. Asking yourself: ‘Am I in the right place?’