Since his arrival at the helm of the CH, Kent Hughes seems to take a mischievous pleasure in acquiring former first-round picks. There have been, in order of arrival with the club, Justin Barron (25th pick in 2020), Kirby Dach (3rd pick in 2019), Michael Matheson (23rd pick in 2012), Sean Monahan (6th pick in 2013), Nicolas Beaudin (27th pick in 2018), Denis Gurianov (12th pick in 2015), Alex Newhook (16th pick in 2019), and Tanner Pearson (30th pick in 2012). This is not to forget the many first-round picks that have been acquired by the new CH general manager.
While some of these players are now veterans, many are still in their prime. This goes to show that many organizations have given up on these first-round draft picks, preferring to move on. Of this group, Dach seems to be the one who has, for the moment, proven the CH general manager right.
However, one might wonder why the Hawks were not patient with him, given that he only played 152 games with the team that drafted him?
Indeed, despite all his talent and the great promises about him, Dach never had his chance with the Hawks. It makes one wonder if the organization had other criticisms against him, beyond his play on the ice?
The change of scenery for the forward has finally done him good and has, for the moment, also been beneficial for the CH. Even though the sample is still small in his new city (60 games), Dach's play when he is healthy clearly shows that he can be a key piece of an NHL team.
