Montreal Canadiens: Setting Realistic Season Expectations For Phillip Danault
Phillip Danault is coming off of a breakout season with the Montreal Canadiens, but what can fans expect from the 24-year-old this year?
Phillip Danault has made a name for himself with the Montreal Canadiens after an impressive 2016-2017 campaign. Danault scored 40 points in 82 games, easily surpassing his previous season-high total of 10 points.
Prior to joining the Canadiens’ organization, Danault was a top prospect for the Chicago Blackhawks. Unfortunately, he was never able to produce at an efficient rate at the AHL or NHL level, and eventually became trade bait.
Danault was acquired by the Canadiens back at the 2016 deadline. Additionally, the Habs received Chicago’s 2018 2nd round pick, in exchange for Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann. The center finished the remainder of the 2015-2016 season with Montreal, scoring 5 points in 21 games.
Development Into a Top Six Center
Danault started the first 13 games of the 2016-2017 season on a line with Torrey Mitchell and Brian Flynn, playing bottom six minutes. He struggled with shooting the puck, posting a Corsi For% of 44 on that line (for those unfamiliar with Corsi, you can read about the stat here). Despite being out-shot, Danault had a Goals For% of 61.54.
The Quebec-native spent the next 16 games bouncing around the lineup, but mostly playing with Max Pacioretty and Andrew Shaw. He also saw time with Artturi Lehkonen and Daniel Carr. Danault struggled immensely in this 16 game stretch, finding it difficult to generate any offence.
Danault’s season took off once he was put on a line with Pacioretty and Alexander Radulov. In addition to receiving a larger 5v5 role, Danault also saw minutes on the power play’s first unit, making him a true “all-situations” player.
The line stayed together for the majority of the season. Unlike Danault’s time with Mitchell and Flynn, the line with Pacioretty and Radulov posted a Corsi For% of 56.8 and a Goals For% of 62.2.
How Should Danault Be Utilized in the 2017-2018 Season?
Assuming the top two centers are Galchenyuk and Danault, quality of line-mates should not be a concern for Danault. With the departure of Radulov, Claude Julien will not be able to recreate last season’s line.
More from Editorials
- Montreal Canadiens: Senators Rebuild At Crisis Point As Kent Hughes Moves Forward
- Montreal Canadiens: Jonathan Drouin Continues Charity Work In Montreal After Leaving Habs
- Montreal Canadiens: Laval Rocket Lineup Going To Be Must Watch
- Montreal Canadiens: Jesse Ylönen Contract Extension Analysis
- Montreal Canadiens: Top 31 Prospects – #31 Quentin Miller
With the Pacioretty-Danault duo still intact, finding a winger to complete the line presents an opportunity for experimentation.
A safe bet could be to add Brendan Gallagher to the line, who has experience playing with the duo. He presents a different set of skills than Radulov, but can create space for his line-mates with his physical presence but still provide offence.
Danault should continue to see time on the penalty kill where he was effective last season. He only put up two power play points, but perhaps with new personnel he can find success there in the future.
What Are Realistic Season Expectations For Danault?
Danault’s 1.83 points per 60 minutes at 5v5 ranked 3rd among Montreal Canadiens’ skaters last season. Assuming Danault sees an increase from his average 13:11 5v5 ice time in 2016-2017, he will see an increase in points if he manages to produce at around the same rate.
Additionally, there will be more opportunity for points if he gets power play time all season long.
A stat line of 17 goals – 35 assists – 52 points seems reasonable for Danault if he does indeed play an 82 game season.
Next: Improving the Team's Goal Statistics
What are your thoughts on Danault? Are the expectations that we have for him do-able? Let us know your thoughts in the comments
Stats used are from naturalstattrick , hockeyviz , leftwinglock , and hockey-reference