Kirby Dach Injury Early Curve Ball For Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens have announced that forward Kirby Dach will miss a significant amount of time.

Kirby Dach has a significant injury. He's out long-term. Still being diagnosed, more coming in the next few hours or days–according to Habs.

— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) October 16, 2023

Dach was injured in the game against his former team, the Chicago Blackhawks, on Saturday night. Former Hab Jarred Tinordi launched Dach into the Blackhawks bench. It didn’t seem all too serious at first, but Dach quickly retreated to the locker room and did not return to the game.

Dach off to the locker room after the hit. Limping on his right side. pic.twitter.com/85YFfLsflk

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) October 14, 2023

Dach’s injury is still being diagnosed, but it appears that it’s a long-term injury that will once again force him to once again miss a lot of playing time while recovering.

Dach, 22, has dealt with injury issues throughout his career, and this is yet another disheartening event for the young centre.

Montreal Canadiens Angle

Now that Dach is no longer in the lineup, the Montreal Canadiens will have to adapt to life without one of their best players in transition. Head coach Martin St-Louis used Dach as a cheat code, placing him on lines that were struggling when it came to controlling the pace of the play.

His skill in transition allowed the lines to generate strong underlying numbers, which usually led to a sustained amount of offence.

Without Dach, the Canadiens will count on Sean Monahan to do a lot of the heavy lifting in transition, and it will surely lead to more ice time for fourth-line centre, Jake Evans.

Alex Newhook played as a centre in the past, and he was used in Dach’s place during practice on Monday.

#Habs Martin St-Louis on Alex Newhook taking Kirby Dach's place centering the 2nd line: "I'd say the lack of size Newie has compared to Dacher he probably makes up in speed, foot speed. He’s going to have more responsibilities but I don’t think it’s anything he can’t handle"

— Priyanta Emrith (@HabsInHighHeels) October 16, 2023

It’s a frustrating situation, both for the player and the team, especially since they were both hoping to enjoy a longer streak of good health this season, but it only took two games for one of the major pieces of the team to receive a major injury.

It’s also unfortunate for a player such as Juraj Slafkovsky, who had enjoyed a lot of success since being placed on the same line as Dach during training camp.

The Canadiens will update the situation as soon as they have more details regarding his diagnosis, but Canadiens fans should not hold their breath for a quick return to play when it comes to Dach’s recovery.