Albizia - will a branch become a stem or trunk?

I have a 3 year old albizia, about 1.5m tall that had a lot of the bark eaten by deer in the spring.  There were just 2 thin strips of bark left, still attached top and bottom but no longer connected to the trunk, over about 30cm. My attempts to reattach and reinforce them have been fruitless and the tree is clearly slowly dying above the damage. 
There is one happy and healthy branch below the damage and I am wondering if this will become a leader if encouraged more vertically, or if a new shoot will come from the junction of the trunk and this branch?
Poor thing was just about to flower for the first time!
Thanks all

Sorry can’t help. Hope he makes it. Just had to google because didn’t have a clue and He’s beautiful.

That's new to me can't recollect ever seeing it the tropics either. Definitely worth a try, whatever you do PP.

Thanks 

The trees are pretty common around here - the damaged one is a seedling from my neighbour's tree, and I have two more tiddlers in pots, so the loss wouldn't be a disaster. just a shame having got the tree that far!

Here's the top of my neighbour's albizia in full bloom - his garden is a few metres below ours so we get to see the blooms from above, arguably better than from below!

   

They can grow pretty big, either multi or single stemmed, but take pruning really well. There's a less common chocolate variety which is rather delicious, too

I forgot an interesting fun fact about this plant, it's one of those that goes to bed at night, closing its leaves!!

And one of the flowers has opened this morning. So pretty!
   

Is it a relative of the antipodean bottle brush?

I don't think so, although the flowers are similar. 
There are lots of callistemons round here too. although they are much less hardy. I haven't got my hands on one yet

So, no the surviving branch has refused to become a leader, but there is a new vertical shoot coming from the point it died back to. It will live, even if it's a funny shape for a while.

That’s great news    . Plants are very resilient , if given a chance/ time / patience.

I have tiny side shoots on a plant. I thought had given up. And a tomato has germinated 5 weeks after sowing.