Danault a steadying force for struggling Habs
Coach Julien reunites gritty centre with Pacioretty after Galchenyuk struggles
At this point, Canadiens coach Claude Julien probably wishes he could just take Alex Galchenyuk’s talent and inject it directly into Phillip Danault’s body.
That’s not a shot at Danault — but it is at Galchenyuk. And the Canadiens coach wasn’t shy about taking some shots at Galchenyuk following practice Monday after demoting him to the fourth line again with Mike McCarron and Nikita Scherbak, who were called up from the AHL’s Laval Rocket on Sunday.
“Chucky has to help himself,” Julien said. “It’s always the same thing: if you’re looking for others to make you better instead of you making others around you better, you probably got the wrong attitude. I think Chucky’s very capable of being better himself without relying on too many people.”
Julien only played 14 games in the NHL, but developed a reputation as a tough defenceman during 12 seasons bouncing around the minors. Monday he delivered a pretty good hit on Galchenyuk and it will be interesting to see how the player responds to those words.
With Galchenyuk back on the fourth line, the top two lines at practice had Jonathan Drouin between Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen, and Danault between Max Pacioretty and Andrew Shaw. An optimist would say they’re both No. 1 lines. A pessimist would say they’re both No. 2 lines with no No. 1 line.
Julien is hoping the chemistry Danault had with Pacioretty last season, when the captain scored 35 goals, can be reignited. The coach put them back together for the start of the second period in Friday night’s 6-2 loss to the Ducks in Anaheim and Pacioretty finished with a game-high 10 shots on goal and looked much more involved in the game. If Pacioretty keeps shooting like that, it’s just a matter of time before one goes in again.
The Canadiens are hoping that will happen Tuesday night when they face the Florida Panthers at the Bell Centre.
Danault is looking forward to helping Pacioretty out.
“We had a great chemistry last year, so we’ll try to get it going again this year and hopefully get some wins … not hopefully,” Danault said, suggesting the wins will definitely come. “We just see each other well on the ice, we talk to each other.”
Danault does not have anywhere near the skill level of Galchenyuk, but nobody will ever question the Victoriaville native’s work ethic and desire. Danault was considered one of the best character players available in the 2011 NHL Draft when the Chicago Blackhawks selected him in the first round (26th overall).
During his draft year, Danault missed only two games with the Victoriaville Tigres after crashing face-first into a crossbar and losing six teeth, which required dental surgery.
You know exactly what you’re going to get from Danault, which isn’t always the case with Galchenyuk.
Danault has heard all the talk about him not being a legitimate No. 1 centre and he isn’t one on a top NHL team. But the Canadiens certainly don’t look like Stanley Cup contenders and Drouin is still learning how to play centre in the NHL, winning only 43 per cent of his faceoffs.
“I’ve been hearing that all my life,” the 24-year-old Danault said. “It’s part of the game, too. I don’t pay attention to that, to be honest. It’s part of playing in Montreal. There’s more people saying good things than bad things, so for me that’s the important point.
“I’m a two-way guy,” the 6-foot1, 195-pounder added. “I want to get better, obviously. I’m still young and I have a lot of stuff to learn. Claude is obviously a good guy to learn from because he had Patrice Bergeron (with the Boston Bruins). He’s been through a lot with him and I want to be that type of player, too. He knows what I can do better and what I’m doing good, too, so it’s good for me to have him here.”
Danault said he and Pacioretty are good friends and he knows how hard the captain can be on himself when things aren’t going well. After the Canadiens’ 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings last Wednesday, Pacioretty said: “I’m the worst one on the ice.”
“We’re all hard on ourselves, but Max has to talk with the media, too,” Danault said. “We definitely are too hard on ourselves sometimes. Obviously, his leadership is very important for our team. You could tell in Anaheim he was hungry, but the bounces are just not there. But it’s going to come.”
Danault thinks Shaw can also help playing on the right wing.
“Shawsy’s playing very good this year,” Danault said. “He’s playing more his game like he did in Chicago. He’s getting those pucks in the dirty areas and paying the price. He’s a great team guy, too. He’s very good for the team.”
So is Danault — even if he’s not really a No. 1 centre.