The Canadian is no longer represented among the competition’s penalty kings: DiDomenico’s path from hothead to model professional

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Chris DiDomenico and emotions, that’s one thing. As a player he can hardly shake his reputation as a hothead and provocateur. In conversations – about emotions – he often seems distant, although the Canadian has a humorous side as soon as he thaws.

Currently you are searching in vain for headlines about DiDomenico. This almost takes some getting used to. No freakouts, no fights, no verbal altercations with fans, no problems with referees. If you click through the rankings of the penalty kings, you will not find the 34-year-old in the top 10, but in 98th place, just inside the top 100: he only has eight penalty minutes on his account, so he has only appeared four times in the cooler, the last time on Friday against Ajoie. DiDomenico was not punished for that for 19 games – apart from the fine for a swallow in the game against the Lakers in mid-October.

DiDomenico’s discipline in this area does not surprise his coach. Apart from the third game of the season against Lugano – where the Canadian scored two deuces – he is easy to deal with, according to Christian Dubé (46). “Chris is at an age where he understands that the team comes first. He has a great attitude now. He knows his job and knows that I need him on the ice and not in the penalty box.

Dubé can handle DiDomenico

Well managed, DiDomenico has mutated into a model professional in Fribourg. However, Dubé does not confirm the feeling that the special character and trademark of his playing is lost due to his emotional restraint. “He brings his energy to our bench.”

The Canadian has known his compatriot for several years and knows how to get along with him. When DiDomenico returned to Gottéron, where he played from 2020 to 2022, Dubé explained to him the guidelines that apply to him. “He respects us as coaches. We talk a lot about how he can keep the focus in the match.” In the final phase with four defeats in a row, this was obviously a bit more difficult. Although he was not as emotional as a player as DiDomenico, Dubé can easily understand his mood, “because I always did everything I could to win.”

But now DiDomenico’s first return to Bern is approaching. At SCB, the striker became more of a burden than an asset last season, partly because he was left behind too often. Are the people of Bern now giving him an uncomfortable reception? “I think it’s a bigger problem for the fans and the media. There is no bad blood among the players. You saw that in the first game. “I don’t expect anything crazy,” says SCB sports director Andrew Ebbett (40). Dubé did not even discuss the match with his protégé, because it was not a problem for him. “We already played against each other, there were no problems.” Ebbett’s only concern is, “I hope we can prevent DiDo from skorting.”

Source : Blick