Kirby Dach gets a major promotion ahead of game against the Avs

Here is what this means for the Hawks' lineup:

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Kirby Dach gets a major promotion ahead of game against the Avs
Zuma Press

The Blackhawks are coming off a great 3-0 victory against the Dallas Stars on home ice. This afternoon, Chicago looks to keep their momentum going as they face the Avalanche at home. It is the first of back-to-back home-and-home games between the two teams. The Blackhawks will travel to Denver overnight.

Dylan Strome was placed on the injury reserve list earlier this week after following the concussion protocol. Matthew Highmore was called up for the Hawks' AHL affiliate to fill the void. It also means that coach Colliton had to shuffle his line combinations to cope with Strome's absence.

The injury to Strome is certainly bad news for Chicago, but it is turning out to be good news for one Blackhawks rookie. Kirby Dach who was confined to a role on the 4th line for a while now will replace Strome on the 2nd offensive line alongside Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat.

Ryan Carpenter will be moved to center on the 4th line as Matthew Highmore slots in on the right wing and Zack Smith stays put on the left wing.

No changes will be made to the Hawks' defensive duos.

Robin Lehner is set to start in front of the Chicago net this afternoon in the first of the home-and-home games. Corey Crawford who earned the shutout against Dallas will be his backup today. Crawford will most likely get the start tomorrow in Colorado.

Here is the Blackhawks' projected lineup for this afternoon's game against the Avs according to NHL.com correspondent Rick Sadowski:

Forwards:

Brandon Saad - Jonathan Toews - Alex Nylander

Alex DeBrincat - Kirby Dach - Patrick Kane

Dominik Kubalik - David Kampf - Andrew Shaw

Zack Smith - Ryan Carpenter - Matthew Highmore

Defensemen:

Duncan Keith - Erik Gustafsson

Calvin de Haan - Brent Seabrook

Olli Maatta - Connor Murphy

Goaltenders:

Robin Lehner

Corey Crawford

Slater Koekkoek and Anton Wedin are set to be the healthy scratches. Meanwhile, Drake Caggiula and Dylan Strome are forced out of the lineup as they are recovering from concussions.