Danault and Lehk are third line players who should see more time together 5 v 5.
Situational players who can take on 2nd line minutes when the game dictates it.
Actually add Army to that line and now we are talking business. The problem as I see it isn't even moving Kotka up it's finding the right fit on the wings. The brass will never give him Tatar and Gallagher like they should as long as we are bubbling...
People are really underrating Danault and Lehkonen at ES. Where they are is honestly perfect for the team right now.
Danault is an excellent face-off guy and two way center. His transition game is underrated too. He, along with Tatar and Gallagher, form a line that out-attempts, chances and scores other team's top lines. They let the Domi line create mismatches to exploit and shelter Kotkaniemi in a perfect development situation.
Lehkonen, on top of being one of Montreal's better producers at ES, creates more at ES than he gets credit for. His shot is frustrating as hell, but I guarantee you fans said that about Domi and Byron too.
Danault is ideally a 3rd line center on a contender, but can play up consistently and effectively. Lehkonen is absolutely top-6 winger that can plug and play anywhere and has untapped potential.
And I've said it elsewhere, Byron-Kotkaniemi-Lehkonen is an ideal development situation for Kotkaniemi. You can also swap Byron or Lehkonen with Tatar, but I'm not sure that's the case.