TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — For as smoothly as Kirby Dach’s first competitive game in a Blackhawks sweater went Friday, his second appearance Saturday proved there will be growing pains for the young star.
Dach was held off the scoresheet save for two third-period penalties — and he followed both calls by arguing with the referees — as the Hawks lost 6-3 to the Maple Leafs in their second game of the Traverse City prospects tournament.
“He’s a competitive guy, he wants to be the best guy on the ice all the time, and when he gets frustrated like that, it takes away from his game a little bit,” said Rockford coach Derek King, heading the Hawks’ team this weekend. “And that’s stuff he’ll learn as he gets older. You can maybe get away with it in the Western League. But at this level, that’s not going to help your game.”
The third overall pick in the draft looked fired up from the start. He was noticeably more physical than he was Friday and pickpocketed Leafs prospects twice early on, showing off his elite stickhandling.
But that aggressiveness burned him later on. The Leafs took a 3-1 lead in the second period when Dach drifted needlessly into a corner scrum, leaving his man wide open in front of the goal. The Hawks allowed three more goals in the third period as Dach, with visibly poor body language, spent more effort complaining about the tightly called game than adjusting to it.
King is right that Dach will soon learn better. Still, this served as a prime example that the Hawks’ top forward prospect, no matter how poised he seems off the ice and how exponential his hype has become, remains an 18-year-old kid.
“He’s used to … not dominating but pretty much doing what he wants out there in juniors,” King said. “But here, you’re playing against your peers and guys that are just as good, if not better. He’s a hell of a player. He just got a little off today.”
Kurashev bounces back with strong outing
Outside of Dach, Phillip Kurashev might have the highest upside of any of the prospect forwards with the Hawks this weekend. Yet he didn’t show it in the 5-4 overtime victory Friday against the Red Wings, in which he was largely invisible.
That changed Saturday. Kurashev’s striking speed and agility stood out time and again as he slashed through the Leafs’ defense, much like he did against the Hawks’ blue-liners at development camp.
It finally translated to the scoreboard late, when the 2018 fourth-rounder scored a slick short-handed goal to cut the deficit to 5-3. But Kurashev was already a strong candidate for having the most impressive performance even before finding the net.
“Today, I felt a lot more comfortable. Yesterday was tough,” Kurashev said. “I just started right away to be involved and try to get some plays early, and I was able to do that for the whole game.”
The Switzerland native’s draft pedigree doesn’t imply greatness, but his stock has risen tremendously in the last year.
He was born at the right time. He’s undersized but quick and looks tailor-made for the modern-day style of hockey, particularly the style the Hawks prefer. On several occasions, Kurashev was a one-man zone-entry machine.
“He’s going to be a nice hockey player,” King said.
