'Tweet' relief: Blackhawks' Dach happier now that he's off social media
Bye bye, Twitter. Adios, Instagram.
Hasta la vista, baby.
In essence, terminating social media is what Blackhawks forward Kirby Dach did a month ago to bring more positivity into his life.
"Just felt like it was something I wanted to try and (then) started having good games," Dach said Saturday. "After that initial week of deleting it you stop going on your phone as much. Got the screen time down, which was good."
Dach's used the extra time to "crush" some TV shows. Asked which ones he finished or started, Dach rattled off four: "Hell on Wheels," "Mayor of Kingstown," "1883" and "Yellowstone."
Interim coach Derek King was impressed by Dach's decision, noting that this era's noise can be much louder than what NHLers dealt with in the 1980s and '90s.
"I used to read the papers a little bit the next day after a game," King said. "I only read it after I scored a couple goals cause if you didn't, there was a little bit of negativity: 'King's got to wake up. He's got to be better.' And it can get to you a little bit. ...
"Then you get those fans that are yapping at you when you're coming off the ice or in the parking lot, but this social media stuff is taking it to another level."
The criticism Dach has taken - whether from fans, media or coaches - isn't surprising.
The No. 3 pick of the 2019 draft has 6 goals and 8 assists and is winning only 33.8% of his faceoffs. Worse yet, he has 1 point in January, scoring in a 6-4 loss at Arizona on Jan. 6.
One reason behind Dach's offensive struggles may because he's been tasked with shutting down the opponent's top line when the Hawks are at home. That's no easy task for anyone, but especially a 21-year-old with just 123 games under his belt.
"He's an offensive kid and he probably wants to get more points and help the team that way," King said. "But he's got to learn to play this way because a lot of times, even if you're on the road, you're going to go up against top lines. So why not be good at checking top lines?"
Not surprisingly, Dach demurred when asked about how he felt about the assignment. As for how he's doing?
"If that's going to be my role, I'm going to play it like that," Dach said. "I'd like to score and get points, because that's all everyone on social media thinks the game of hockey is about.
"It's a hard game, shutting down those lines. You're getting the best players each night and that's a challenge that I want.
"Obviously you want to score - that's the best way to play defense is to keep them in their own zone. But I feel like my game has been good."
Eventually, Dach would like to become one of the top centers in the league. An Aleksander Barkov. A Patrice Bergeron. A Sean Couturier. A Mark Scheifele. And, yes, a Jonathan Toews.
Those five not only consistently hit 60-plus points each season, but also win faceoffs and play a responsible, 200-foot game.
Dach believes he can get there one day.
"There's good communication from the coaching staff and management (about) what they believe I can be and what I think I can be as well," Dach said. "(We are) trying to find what's the perfect fit and how it's all going to work out down the road because this isn't a one- or two-year project.
"This is my career and I want to be able to develop into a player that can be here for a long time and have success on the ice. (Then) hopefully (we can) start bringing back that winning mentality, get back to the playoffs and enjoy that ride."