Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
Since returning, Kaiden Guhle has shown flashes defensively but still looks lost at times, and his play hasn’t improved over the last few games.
You can clearly see that the defenseman struggles at times and that the pace of play is sometimes far too fast for him right now.
No. 21 has been only a shadow of himself on the ice over the past few games. You have to wonder whether his injury is still affecting him.
We all remember that he appeared to be in a lot of pain recently against the Colorado Avalanche. In short, even though Martin St-Louis is trying to manage his usage to limit the damage, last night in Minnesota was a painful one.
It wasn’t a defensive masterpiece for anyone, but Guhle looked particularly bad in his own zone. His positioning on the Wild’s first goal remains a mystery for many observers this morning.
He looked hesitant, always a fraction of a second behind the play unfolding in front of him. On the second goal, his coverage once again broke down, allowing the opponent to slip away far too easily toward the goaltender.
Concerns continue as Kaiden Guhle still searches for his game after returning from injury
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The overtime sequence unfortunately summed up his difficult night at the office against the Wild. He lost his footing all by himself while shorthanded, just seconds before the fatal goal that sealed the outcome of the game.
It must be said that his partner Mike Matheson wasn’t perfect either, particularly on the home team’s third goal. Let’s just say the Canadiens’ top pairing made a difference for all the wrong reasons last night.
There is an important context to consider: the visitors were effectively operating with just five defensemen. Arber Xhekaj barely saw the ice, logging under six minutes, which increased the workload on the rest.
With only 20 shots on goal and obvious disorganization, the Canadiens can consider themselves lucky to have picked up a point in the standings. You can’t put everything on the officiating, even if it was ridiculous at times and the non-call on Suzuki was clear as day.
Kaiden Guhle clearly hasn’t returned to his usual self, and you can only hope it isn’t a lingering injury or a health concern, but the entire defensive unit also needs to tighten things up.
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Kaiden Guhle’s struggles vs the Minnesota Wild raise new concerns
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