It was only a couple of months into last season that first-year Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube offered a slumping Max Domi a simple bit of public advice: Try shooting the puck more often.
鈥淚 think Max has got to maybe take a little bit of a different approach and not be such a selfless player and shoot more,鈥 is how Berube said it.
It wasn鈥檛 exactly controversial stuff. At the time Berube spoke those words, Domi had gone 19 games without scoring a goal before missing time with a lower-body injury. Even though Domi鈥檚 strength has always been as a playmaker, the coach was making the case that shooting more聽鈥 and 鈥済etting to the net and the greasy areas a little more,鈥 as Berube also suggested聽鈥 would make him a more effective all-round threat.
The stats will tell you Domi didn鈥檛 exactly embrace the approach. Domi finished the season registering 5.3 shots on goal per 60 minutes, by far the lowest rate of his career. In the year the coach wanted him to shoot more frequently, Domi put the puck on net less reliably than he ever has. He scored all of eight goals in the regular season. He did, to his credit, shoot enough to score three goals in the playoffs, fifth on the team and exactly as many as Matthews, including an overtime winner against the Senators.
Which brings us to this season. Berube has already re-upped his request for Domi to shoot more, saying he could be a potential fit for Mitch Marner鈥檚 old spot on the Auston Matthews line, especially if he diversified his pass-first habit. And Domi, when he was asked about Berube鈥檚 directive after Wednesday鈥檚 training-camp skate in Etobicoke, said he would do as the coach asked.
But then Domi was asked another question: Does he agree with the coach鈥檚 assessment that shooting more would be good for his game?
Hildeby, who could replace Woll to start the season,聽stops 23 of 23 shots before Senators rally
鈥淗ey, man, we keep that stuff in house,鈥 Domi said.
Which could have easily been confused as media-scrum code for: 鈥淗ell, no.鈥
Domi continued with a professionally diplomatic response.
鈥淚 know you guys got to do your job, but whatever I’m asked to do and whatever conversations I have with my coach I鈥檓 going to keep between myself and the coach, as it should for everyone,鈥 Domi said. 鈥淏ut no, Chief wants the best for every guy in that locker room and he wants us all to be a part of something special. So (if) shooting the puck is part of that, then I鈥檓 going to do my best to do more of it.鈥
There鈥檚 always a coach-player push-pull in pro sports. Coaches are hired to make players better. And players, for the most part, want to be coached. But it鈥檚 rarely that simple. A coach can say to a veteran: You鈥檇 be better if you played a different way. To which a veteran player can reply with statistical evidence: I鈥檝e stayed in this league a long time playing my way.
Certainly Domi has been around long enough to have an opinion about how he performs best. Born in Winnipeg in 1995, the month before his father, Tie, was traded from the Jets to the Maple Leafs, Max Domi has literally never known a life that doesn鈥檛 include the NHL. Once a smiley tyke tagging along with dad to practice, he鈥檚 now 30 and heading into his 11th NHL season. And his time at the rink, he said, is becoming more precious.
鈥淎s you do get older, you really start to appreciate every single day,鈥 Domi said. 鈥淚 think with the initial part of your career, you just think you’re going to be in the NHL forever聽鈥 not that you don’t value every single day, every practice, every game, and even the tough days.
鈥淪o I’ve been I’ve been having a lot of fun, enjoying it. I enjoy every second, and love being out there with the guys right now.鈥
Max Domi’s injury leaves the door open for Matias Maccelli on right wing.聽
Whether or not Domi鈥檚 game can evolve in the way Berube envisions, with him being more of a shooting threat and a blue-paint presence, might say a lot about his chances of earning extended time with Matthews on the first line. Then again, as a pro playing for his seventh NHL team, Domi is well aware that even the best combinations are temporary, and that there鈥檚 a balance to be struck between being the player you know you can be and the one your coach believes you should be. Considering Domi is Toronto鈥檚 fifth-highest paid forward, on the books for a cap hit of $3.75 million (U.S.) for this year and two more after that, the Leafs can only hope he finds it.
鈥淲hatever I’m asked to do, I’ll be ready to play in that position,鈥 Domi said. 鈥淎s I’ve always said from the time I signed here, it’s been my childhood dream to play here. So you just empty the tank every single day and do whatever it takes to help the team win.鈥
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