Blue Jackets want Domi to take a shot
It's not easy to alter a hockey player's instincts.
Some are natural shooters. Others are born passers. Some are in between, which is where the Blue Jackets hope Max Domi lands for them this season after acquiring him in October via a trade with the Montreal Canadiens for Josh Anderson.
“You can't change too much of who you are as a player,” said Domi, who describes himself as a pass-first center. “I've been like that since I was a little kid. (But) if you can establish that shot mentality, and all of a sudden other stuff opens up, that's how you can grow your game. So that's where I'm at personally, for trying to understand there's a right time to shoot — and a shot is definitely not a bad play ever.”
It certainly wasn't for the Canadiens in 2018-19, the first of Domi's two seasons in Montreal. While centering a top-six line, he finished with career highs in goals (28), assists (44) and shots (203), ranking second only to Brendan Gallagher among teammates in the latter category.
That worked out to a blistering 13.8% shooting percentage, also a career high, but his success didn't carry over to last season. Despite averaging slightly more shots per game last season, Domi's shooting percentage dipped to 9.5% and he finished with 17 goals and 27 assists in 71 games.
Along the way, the 25-year-old also was bumped to the wing and demoted to the Canadiens' fourth line in the NHL'S summer postseason, which stung, he acknowledged.
That fueled him with motivation for this season in Columbus, but Domi's focus now is trained on beating those who literally stand between him and another great offensive output — the goalies.
Blue Jackets goaltending coach Manny Legace has already been in Domi's ear about how best to beat them, and he's encouraging more of a shot-first mentality.
“I mean, we've got the best (goalie) tandem in the league, as far as I'm concerned,” Domi said of facing Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins in practices. “Both of those guys, if they start to realize I'm going to be a pass-first guy, it's much easier to play against that when they know (I'm) going to pass the puck.”
So the goal is to go against his instincts and shoot more often, something he continues to practice daily. Domi's shot might come in handiest during power plays, which have vexed the Blue Jackets the past three seasons.
“Sometimes in the past, I've been known to maybe pass a little too much, and this year I'm really going to focus on getting the puck on net and making that simple play of just shooting the puck,” he said. “It doesn't necessarily have to go in the first time, but the second and third time is how you score goals now in the NHL, especially on the power play.”
There should be plenty of chances to dish it, especially with Nick Foligno and Cam Atkinson as wingers. Foligno is a hard-driving forechecker, and Atkinson is a natural scorer who attacks seams to
find good production areas.
“He seems like a pass-first guy, which always gets me excited — even though he can score a lot of goals,” Atkinson said of Domi. “He can slow the game down and he wants the puck. It gives me a chance to get lost (in the offensive zone), and I know that he's going to be looking for me all the time.”
Looking for teammates is part of Domi's makeup, which, he said, has tugged at him throughout his career. The trick will be going against his hockey DNA to fire one off on occasion.