Dylan DeMelo

Last Season

Three goals and 19 points in all 82 games, plus-seven, on twenty-one and a half minutes a night. He spent 67 percent of his five-on-five time with Morrissey, which is as settled as NHL pairings get.

The Finesse Game

Almost entirely about the first pass. He retrieves under pressure, turns, and moves the puck before the forecheck arrives — quickly, simply, and to the correct man. Twenty-three goals in 718 career games says everything about his offensive ambition, and it is the right ambition for the job he has.

He does not carry the puck, does not activate, and does not take chances. His partner does all of that, which is precisely why the pairing works.

The skating is sound rather than notable. He defends the rush by positioning himself early.

The Physical Game

Six-one and 194, and he defends with angles and stick detail. He is willing along the wall and in front of his own net without being able to overpower anyone.

He has been durable, which for a right-shot defenceman playing twenty-one minutes is a large part of his value.

The Intangibles

The 179th pick, four organisations, and a decade of being the player somebody better gets to play beside. That is a specific skill and it is not widely distributed.

He is thirty-three. The game does not depend on speed, so it should hold for a few more years; the pairing is what makes both of them look right, and it is the thing this club can least afford to break up.