The Canadiens are banking on having center Kirby Dach available for their opening night lineup after he underwent surgery on his right knee in February, EVP of hockey operations Jeff Gorton told Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports. Sportsnet’s Eric Engels adds he’s recovered enough to participate in training camp when it starts later this week, although it’s unclear if that’s in a contact capacity.
By all indications, the 24-year-old’s recovery from a second major surgery on his right knee in as many years has been as smooth as can be hoped. He was on the ice late last month for an informal skate in full gear, although that didn’t subject him to the pace and veracity of a formal camp session. Still, being back on the ice at around the five-month mark should be a good omen.
Montreal hopes a healthy Dach is also an improved one. He’s now entering his fourth season with the Habs after they acquired the 2019 third overall pick from the Blackhawks at the 2022 draft. He still hasn’t reached the heights and promise he offered during his first year north of the border, when he managed a 14-24–38 scoring line and averaged a hearty 18:30 per game despite injuries limiting him to 58 appearances.
In the last two years, his right knee issues have limited him to 59 games, scoring only 10 goals and 24 points with a -27 rating. He produced at a 54-point clip per 82 games back in 2022-23 but has only scored at a 33-point pace since. He also had some of the worst defensive impacts on the team last year before his season ended prematurely. Despite receiving the most sheltered even-strength minutes of his career by a wide margin, starting over 63% of his shifts in the offensive zone, Montreal controlled only 44.8% of shot attempts and 46.0% of expected goals with him on the ice. Posting below team-average possession numbers with that degree of sheltering is a rather significant red flag.
That’s not exactly the type of player a team with playoff aspirations wants centering their second line, particularly with a rookie Ivan Demidov likely to start the year on his flank. Nonetheless, their lack of offseason activity at forward hasn’t left them with many other options. It’ll be some combination of him, trade pickup Zachary Bolduc, and Alex Newhook – all promising young players with spotty or non-existent track records at center – competing for that 2C slot. Might bottom-six staple Jake Evans get a look at an expanded role coming off a career-high 36 points?
Montreal should find a way to lose Dach, ASAP! The Canadiens could be a serious playoff team if they can get the center position figured out.
Hey Wilf/Sparky, I see you changed your handle again.
And he’s on another one of his infamous heaters, hitting most of the forums, many of them multiple times. Let him run. This is when the entertainment level provided by this gem hits peak levels.
Everybody expects Kirby Dach to be ready all the time. The real question should be, For how long exactly? So far the answers been, Not long.