The scoring drought on the stat sheet during this past stretch to end the year may benefit Laich in the long term. Brooks Laich may not have the hardest slap shot or wrist shot on the team or even be listed in the top five on the team, but his hard work and determination may yet improve his role as a secondary scorer.
As Laich and team personnel look at the causes leading to a lack of point production, the most common answer they'll find is the most simple of all. Laich scores when he's in front of the net. He may not be as proficient as Dino Ciccirelli, but most of Laich's best work is the result of hard work and chip ins and rebounds in front of the net. Even when he isn't credited with a point, his efforts in the crease as a screen yield opportunities for his teammates. Aside from empty net goals, most of the best highlights and goals for Laich aren't from the point or on break aways, but right in front of the net which happens to be an area of need for a team that already has such gifted talent skating in and shooting from the point such as Ovechkin, Semin, and Green.
It often takes young players time to develop and heed the advice from the coaching staff to go to the net. It's a painful process to go to the net when more likely than not a stick will be crashing into your legs from an opposing goaltender or a shot to the kidneys from a defenseman attempting to provide his goaltender a clear view from potential shots on net. Tomas Fleischmann added more weight giving him the new found confidence to endure the physical assault by going to the net more often and the results have been obvious and reflected in the scoring column.
Years ago the Capitals were faced with a decision between two players on the team and which would be the player to stay on the team. Both players were told to go to the net. Dmitri Khristich didn't heed the advice and was traded while Peter Bondra did go to the net more earning more playing time and helped make him the current leader in most offensive categories for the Capitals.
As Laich looks to regain his scoring touch, he need only look further then the opposition's net minder and make camping out there a full time job. The reward from his efforts won't only benefit himself but the entire team with his quiet selfless and unnoticed work down low.
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