Craig Button isn't afraid to go on Tony Marinaro's various Sick Podcasts and make bold claims about the Montreal Canadiens. The most recent one came this weekend when he suggested that the Canadiens trade for a second-line center to replace Kirby Dach. It isn't as bold as you may think, as Dach's performance this season isn't what people believed would happen. Excuses are there for Dach, who missed all of last season with a knee injury. However, he should be looking better after 15 games.
Dach looked suitable for a few games on the wing, while Juraj Slafkovsky was out of the lineup with an injury. It looked like Dach was about to turn it around and reach his potential. He is now pointless in six consecutive games, which aligns with the Canadiens' six-game losing streak. He had a goal and two assists in two victories before the streak began.
It isn't as simple as, "When Dach is rolling, the team is rolling." It certainly helps when Dach is recording points, and Montreal will win more games than they lose with a second-line center who finds himself on the scoresheet. The problem is that Dach is too inconsistent. Dach had a point in the first game, then went on a five-game pointless streak. He then had a three-game point streak before this six-game stint.
Button used the Dallas Stars' trading of Jarome Iginla for Joe Nieuwendyk as an example. He believes the Canadiens could move a young prospect to add a second-line center. Iginla went on to be one of the greatest players in Calgary Flames history, but Nieuwendyk was a massive addition for the Stars.
Nieuwendyk suffered through some injuries, but was an integral piece of the Stars 1999 Stanley Cup run. He had 55 points in 67 games in the regular season, then added 11 goals and ten assists in the playoffs. He had six game-winners in that playoff run and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Can you see Dach having that type of season in three years and winning the Canadiens a Stanley Cup? Sometimes, Button has outlandish ideas that aren't necessarily the right move. However, he does have a point with this Nieuwendyk example. The only question now is whether there is a center on the market that the Canadiens can target.