Some guys, said Marc Methot, just tend to click.
The scruffy-faced Ottawa Senators defenceman is talking about defence pairings and why some seem to work and why others do not. But really, he is talking about the role that changed his career.
Three years ago, Methot was traded from Columbus to Ottawa and was immediately paired with Erik Karlsson. At the time, it seemed to make perfect sense. It paired Karlsson, a run-and-gun defenceman who was coming off his first Norris Trophy win, with a stay-at-home, 6-foot-3, 230-pounder who was amongst the league leaders in hits.
There was only one problem: Methot had never really played above the second pairing.