Canadiens Analysis
Impact Of Long Term Kaiden Guhle Injury On Canadiens Lineup

The Montreal Canadiens have announced defenceman Kaiden Guhle will be out indefinitely with a lacerated quadricep muscle, which required surgical intervention.
The recovery for the surgery varies, but according to one study, most workers return to their jobs after roughly four months. A few other sources mentioned a shorter recovery time frame, but given we have little to no information about the details of Guhle’s injury, not to mention we lack a medical degree, it’s best to assume he will be out of action for the foreseeable future, at the very least.
The fact that the Canadiens did not offer a time frame is also far from an encouraging sign.
Le défenseur Kaiden Guhle a subi une lacération au muscle du quadriceps, qui a nécessité une intervention chirurgicale. Il a obtenu son congé de l’hôpital aujourd’hui et sera tenu à l’écart du jeu pour une période indéterminée.
Defenseman Kaiden Guhle sustained a lacerated… pic.twitter.com/dCriJjdJtH
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) January 29, 2025
Guhle Impact On The Montreal Canadiens Lineup
The first domino to fall was the recall of defenceman Jayden Struble from the Laval Rocket. Even though the young defenceman quickly lost his shine this season, it’s only fair to remind everyone that when he was paired alongside Arber Xhekaj, Struble produced very solid numbers.
In fact, other than David Savard, every defensive partner that has played with Struble has enjoyed good results.
MUST READ: Finding A Role For Montreal Canadiens Defenceman Jayden Struble
As for plugging the hole left behind by Guhle, all I can say is godspeed to general manager Kent Hughes. Lane Hutson and Mike Matheson are already among the busiest defencemen in the league, while Alexandre Carrier isn’t too far behind.
To make matters more complicated, Guhle was the second-busiest Canadiens defenceman at 5v5, playing over 18 minutes per game for Martin St-Louis.
The options to replace him are few and far between. Or, to be even more accurate, they don’t exist.
The defensive group will have to absorb his ice time by committee, a situation that’s not ideal given the current workload for the defencemen in the top four. It’s also worth pointing out that Savard’s numbers have cratered significantly in the last two years, to the point that he should be kept as far away from the top four as possible if the Canadiens want to cling to the hope of qualifying for the playoffs.
Laval Rocket Options
For now, the Canadiens can afford to play with just six defencemen, but the California trip is coming up, which means they are likely to recall a defenceman from the AHL for reinforcements during the West Coast trip.
The first name that comes to mind for most is offensive-minded blueliner Logan Mailloux. He’s set to represent the Rocket at the All-Star weekend thanks to another solid offensive season that has seen him score nine goals and 13 assists in 35 games. Even though the sample size is limited, he has managed to register four points in his six NHL games, which points to a player who is ready to help from an offensive standpoint. He’s also a right-handed defenceman, which could help head coach Martin St-Louis balance his defensive group.
Logan Mailloux calls game🗣️@RocketLaval | #LAVvsPRO pic.twitter.com/xNlF565C1S
— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) January 26, 2025
However, despite Guhle producing a very healthy amount of offence, he mostly did it at 5v5, whereas Mailloux specializes in powerplay production, and his defensive play still leaves a lot to be desired.
If the Habs want to call up a player who has more professional hockey experience, they could look to Adam Engstrom, a left-handed defenceman that has the ability to play on his offside.
Like Mailloux, Engstrom feels comfortable in the offensive zone, as evidenced by his four goals and 15 assists this season for the Rocket. He’s quickly become one of the most trusted players in the lineup, absorbing a lot of ice time for head coach Pascal Vincent.
I’d argue he also has a lot of work to be done in the defensive zone, but he’s not prone to as many mistakes as his All-Star counterpart, a factor that could tip the scales in favour of the 21-year-old Swede.
Adam Engstrom OT winner for @RocketLaval as heard on @TSN690 @TheAHL pic.twitter.com/9T5nA2iaNA
— Campbell (@seanrcampbell) January 23, 2025
Yet another injury for Guhle. This guy has had too many already in his young career (including junior too). It’s something to consider when we’re looking to the future and who will be around when we want to compete for a Cup.
He was playing the best hockey of his life in recent weeks, which aligned with him moving over and playing his strong side. Think he was playing his off side the game he got injured? His skating had gone to another level and so had his decision making. He showed that he was an intricate part of the top 4 and could play either pairing and log big minutes. Since Christmas he was producing at a 40 point pace and was plus 7 at about 22 minutes per game. In other words he’s a STUD!
At 23, I have no idea of why you’d say he might not be part of the group who will be around when want to compete for a cup but I do recall you stating redundantly that we are a long long long long way from there. I’ll continue to enjoy reminding you how much better we are doing than you forecasted. On your timeline, we might be a playoff team by 2027-2028 as I recall. If he at 23 might be too old on your timeline, same would likely hold true for most of our young core.
To reiterate my timeline from the summer of 2023, playoff bubble team this year, likely missing out, marginal playoff team next season, secondary Cup contender in 26-27 and strong Cup contender for the following half decade+- our window.
I have absolutely zero concerns about Guhle from an age or skill standpoint. My concern is for his health. I agree, he’s a stud, but he’s also been injured every season since his junior years and being drafted. My concern is we count on him to be one of our top 4 for the next decade plus, but when we really need him (like the playoffs), he gets injured and our hopes and dreams go down with him. Not too many Cup contenders can win it all minus one of their top 4 Dmen. I’m not suggesting that we trade him or anything. All I was saying is that his fragility is something we need to consider when building the team to win a Cup. We’re going to need to ensure that our #5 Dman is also a stud, so that he can step in when Guhle almost inevitably gets hurt and we don’t miss our chance to go far in the playoffs because one of our key pieces is always getting injured. I think Xhekaj can be that guy btw. I just hope he isn’t sacrificed along the way for something else. To me, he’s an essential piece of our future. I also feel that we shouldn’t be too quick to get rid of Matheson when his contract is expiring. I still have concerns about Hutson’s durability. If we put all of our offensive Dman eggs in his basket, and he goes down, that’s a devastating blow.
Maybe the folks here at MHN would consider an article outlining all the injuries Guhle has already had in his short career? It would open a lot of people’s eyes. Many have been to his knees/legs too. A hobbled, less mobile Guhle is a major concern.
That’s legitimate Tyrone and I’m sure management has had conversations about health issues of all the players. Foolish not to consider such things, but that is universal in pro sports and not just for the Habs. Think any contending team doesn’t worry about their top players? I try to take such things into consideration when forecasting. It is less of an issue for us than others and the reason is balance
I know Caufield was prone his first few years and then the surgery in 2023 but he’s played every game since. Evans never played a full season until last one. The same concerns for Dach and Laine. Hutson is a horse so far, but based on him being the lightest nhl player escalates the concern. But Quinn, Cale and Fox are similar type players and all well below nhl averages and all are very durable . Connor garland at 165 plays a gritty agitation game and it’s been a few years since he missed a game and he’s the next lightest guy .
Despite the alleged major injury history, I’m going to offer a very different and more fact based perspective. Guhle played 2 complete seasons of junior injury free, fyi and played on championship teams in Prince Albert in his rookie year in18-19 and Edmonton in his world junior captain year of 21-22 and he played every playoff game both years. So you’re creating fear of him missing all the playoffs based on what? He might get hurt??
This season is only his 3 year in the nhl and he played 70 games last year. That’s 85% +. In Fact he played 114 of the teams past 128 games until getting hurt the other night, pretty remarkable for a guy constantly injured, downright a miracle I’d say. He was playing the best I had ever seen the past month and that is after the major injury concerns you refer to so there are no ill effects from the previous ones as how would he be his best ever if he’s hobbled? I do acknowledge he has had injuries in his last 2 years of junior plus half a season as an nhl rookie before the good run I detailed above.
One final point. You make it sound like he is the guy that our future playoff success rests upon- if he goes down, the ship does as well. Nope. This team has balance with a dozen guys that are big contributors now and likely 5 or more in a couple years from now with Reinbacher Demidov Fowler Hage beck Roy and maybe a free agent or another guy we draft or trade for. We are better with him for sure, but that tells you just how many high caliber players we have currently and adding near term which is the basis for my optimism- balance.
When I referred to injuries back to junior, I wasn’t implying all of them. I was referring to his final season where he suffered a knee injury that required surgery. He also suffered knee, shoulder and leg injuries (plus a few other little things) in all of his NHL seasons so far. Just because he hasn’t missed a playoff game yet, doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Injuries can happen at any time. I also don’t mean to imply that we don’t have depth. We have tons. But any Cup contender losing a top 4 stud in the playoffs is definitely going to suffer for it regardless of team depth. The further we go in the playoffs the smaller the margin between the teams and losing Guhle (or any other key player) could be the difference between winning or not. I’m not saying Guhle is a fragile player made of glass. He’s just had his fair share of injuries already in his career. Certainly more than our other young D guys. I just worry that we might move out some D (like Matheson) only to then lose Guhle for an extended period and suddenly go from great depth to having a hole at the worst possible time.
Also, back to our first interaction on this post, I think we will make the playoffs not next year, but the season after that. I expect a step back next season because all the vets that have been so important to our stretch of success lately will be gone and replaced with kids that will have growing pains. We can’t expect Beck or Kapanen to step in and do what Evans and Armia are doing this year. The rest of the core will be that much more experienced and that could be enough to get us to squeak in, but I’m not going to expect that, just cross my fingers and hope it does. The addition of Demidov is also a wild card, that could be the difference maker, but I don’t want to put too much pressure on the kid. I don’t expect Hage to be in Montreal next season yet. Same for Fowler. I think they’re at least 2 years away.
Rookies that displace veterans do so primarily because they are better players. So I do expect Beck to come in and perform at similar levels as the incumbent. I expected it from Hutson, I expect it from Demidov, Reinbacher et al. If bringing rookies in hurt your team, you’d be very hesitant bring them in. Now it’s not that simple of course as there are injuries, trades, cap, free agents and retirement issues that present opportunities for rookies. Last year Armia got sent down and the pundits were insisting it was all done for him. Evans was hardly ever mentioned by anyone until this year. In his last 15 games, 1+1=2 and -1 and while he has had an excellent season- his best- I do expect Beck can seemlessly replace him.
Earlier this season, Gallagher was the man but crickets lately as he has 4 points his last 18 games, and a -5. That’s not even a 20 point pace. My point is that these guys aren’t irreplaceable, they are interchangeable pieces and frankly, I think we can and will significantly improve those roster spots moving forward. Ask Emil if a rookie can provide improved play over a veteran. Improved rosters leads to improved performance and for us that means the playoffs. Experience is a catch all. If your experience and tenure is your greatest current asset, you’re not really contributing. Results, I’m more interested in results. A guy that loses every fight over a decade can claim he’s more experienced than a hot young prospect but he loses again and gets knocked out in round 1, but hey he had experience. I’m not saying there is no merit in experience, but it needs to be qualified. Beck was a memorial cup mvp- only 1 a year out of several thousand players. He played team Canada, twice
How many world class, best in class experiences has Evans had in his hockey career? None So based on the criteria of high quality experience, beck is better qualified. Jake was selected 207 overall Beck 33 in his draft year. So based on pedigree I expect Beck to be a very good hockey player, better ceiling than Jake. I’d trade Jake at his highest market value, which is right now.
Agree on the arrival of Hage and Fowler, minimum 2 seasons, but could be a little more. A steady injection of high end talent is the best model to manage cap and for organic improvements. I see no reason for going backward next year- we are seeing the step back now but we will play through it. For the greatest probable benefit for the future, missing the playoffs this year and getting a final chance to get a high pick or two is not horrible but I would greatly enjoy them playing playoff hockey too.
I don’t disagree with any of your points specifically, but I do disagree holistically. Experience is better than a rookie in most instances. Sure, Demidov is going to come in a do stuff that maybe nobody else on the team can do, but that’s a rarity. That’s elite offensive “franchise” type guys. I was talking about bottom 6 type guys where there isn’t as much skill as there are smarts. There’s a reason teams go out and get vets at the deadline vs rookies. There’s a reason we kept Savard around to mentor the kids. It’s taken Savard, Evans and Armia (and even Dvorak) years to learn what they’re doing and to expect Beck and Kapanen or someone else to come in and be as good or better in their first year in the league is expecting too much. Will there be better in a few years? Sure. I definitely hope so. One of the things you didn’t mention in your last response that explains why kids are chosen over vets is a rebuild. That’s where kids are chosen over vets not because they’re better and ready to supplant them. They’re chosen because the rebuilding team is willing to take a step back in order to give kids experience so that they’re better in the future. It already happened at the beginning of the rebuild with our top end offensive and defensive guys. Now it’s about to happen with the bottom end guys. And that’s where caginess is extremely valuable. That’s where experience trumps a young buck. Like I said, I’m expecting to take a step back next year vs continuing our linear growth. It doesn’t mean a plummet back to the bottom of the standings by any means. It could simply be a plateau because the first wave of the rebuild kiddies are good enough to make up for the loss of the last wave of vets. Or Demidov could come in and single-handedly raise the bar. I think we’ll continue to be sort of in the mix this year (but eventually fall back, perhaps sooner than later ), then be sort of in the mix again next year, and then finally bust our way into the playoffs the year after. We might even make some noise, but I’ll have to see where the top teams in the Atlantic are by that time. In the meantime, I’m just going to enjoy the good moments and not get too worked up during the inevitable growing pains that have to occur.
I agree with your take. I would also like to add that even though this is a bad blow to deal with and take. At least it’s opened an actual opportunity for Struble to actually have a role instead of constantly being the odd man out and get a rare opportunity here and there and trying to figure it out with very limited minutes. I by no means think that Struble is just going to pick up and do exactly what Kuhle does, but I think he will shine if given the opportunity on the second pairing. I also think Engstrom is ready for the call up for depth especially with his ability to play his off side. I definitely don’t think this tanks the season as much as this sucks, I think we’ll be okay
Great perspective Tony, next man up gets an opportunity to make himself invaluable. Stubble has the inside track but with Engstrom appearing to be worthy of an audition and Mailloux seemingly turning things around, Jayden better make the most of it, especially where Reinbacher is rehabbing and nearing a return to game action. Playing under pressure helps define players. Strubble has played exactly 82 games in the nhl. Tonight he begins his sophomore 82, hope he plays great.