Canadiens Injuries
Canadiens Injuries: David Reinbacher Approaching Return To Play
There was some very encouraging news on Friday, with injured Montreal Canadiens prospect David Reinbacher was spotted practicing with a regular jersey alongside Laval Rocket players.
The original diagnosis following an unfortunate incident that injured his left knee was five to six months, placing his return somewhere between late February and early March.
Of course, we can’t assume he will play in the very near future, but it does seem like he’s progressing nicely, which means there’s a chance he can return to play ahead of schedule.
À l’arena Guimond ce matin pour l’entraînement du @RocketLaval.
Pas de Laurent Dauphin, ni de Logan Mailloux sur la glace.
MAIS, David Reinbacher y est avec un chandail régulier. Il s’approche dangereusement d’un retour au jeu. pic.twitter.com/dcXJr8Eb4X
— Vincent Demuy (@VDemuy) February 14, 2025
If he’s ready by the end of February, he will have an opportunity to play roughly 20 games in the AHL before the end of the season, a fairly healthy workload when we consider there was a possibility he could miss most of the year.
It would be great timing for the Rocket, as they’re currently the top team in the league, and are aiming for a healthy run in the playoffs in a bid to capture the team’s first Calder Cup. There’s also a possibility the Canadiens will move a defenceman or two at the deadline, which would put more pressure on the young defencemen that are currently playing for the Rocket, as well as opening up important ice time for Reinbacher.
MUST READ: Montreal Canadiens Must Keep A Close Eye On The Laval Rocket As The Trade Deadline Looms
P Is For Patience
At the risk of pontificating about the impact of long-term injuries, just like Kirby Dach and Patrik Laine before him, Reinbacher will need a lot of time to find his rhythm.
Fans are probably sick of hearing this injury-related refrain, however, there’s no denying an athlete that suffers a significant injury to his knee will need ample runway once he’s ready to return to play.
Especially a younger prospect who had already gone through a frustrating Draft+1 season in the National League (Swiss), such as Reinbacher. Not only did he have to deal with an early injury, which completely derailed his momentum, he also had three different head coaches in just one season, the polar opposite of consistency.
When Reinbacher returns, he will be playing against opponents who are in top form, making it a very difficult hill to climb at this late point of the season.
It’s not a matter of babying Reinbacher, either.
It’s simply the reality when professional sports intersect with serious injuries.
Just as the 20th century poet William Bruce Rose Jr explained in 1989, all we need is a little patience.
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I hope we take it extra cautious with him since both seasons since he was drafted have essentially been a write off. I don’t want to see him in league play until he’s over ready and healed.
I’m so excited for this. Even if it’s only 20 games, it could also (hopefully) include a large chunk of playoff hockey.
I’d be interested in learning from insiders if they know his gym routine? Obviously you’re limited in what you can do with only one knee, but did he do any upper body stuff? The scouting analyses that I’ve read that have dropped his rankings cite the fact he appears to play a much less physical game, that it has less bite to it than it did in his draft year. Obviously this comes in the context of a terrible Kloten team where he was coming off early injury and likely asked to make sure he stays in the lineup as their best (or one of) Dman, and his games with the rocket have been limited thus far. But it would be really cool if he added nice upper body muscle and brought that bite back to his game…. (Yes I get a lot of battles, hits etc come from strong lower body leverage…)
This is me being greedy of course, as I fully understand it will take time for him to get into game shape at all, let alone reestablishing a very physical game.
A lot of this rebuild is impacted by Reinbacher working out. As of now, we need a 2C and a top pair RD. Imagine if he hits that ceiling and we don’t have to spend additional assets acquiring one? Oh man that would be amazing. Then we can really spend on that 2C, maybe even have enough assets for a second 1C like many recent contenders have (McDavid and Draisaitl, Crosby and malkin, Stamkos and point, etc…. No I’m not saying we’ll get someone quite as good nor am I saying neither Hage nor Dach could ever fit the role). He should at least be a second pairing guy, which is fine considering the reports Michkov wanted Philly (from Friedman) and other options weren’t potential top 6 Cs and we seem to have a strong top 6 winger group (caufield, slaf, Demidov, Laine, perhaps Hage if he has to move to the wing) and the fact wingers are easier to get on average. But if he hits his full potential, as a legit top pair RD… my goodness we’re in great shape.
Buuuuuuut im way ahead of myself lol. Here’s hoping he stays healthy, gets some solid games in this year, and can just develop well despite his missed time. Then goes all out in the offseason and is ready to rock next year. He has all the tools. It’ll be fun watching him put them together
Ryan Leonard would look pretty good in a Habs jersey though. Had we taken him, we’d actually have the #1 AND #2 prospect not currently playing in the NHL (Demidov ranked #1).
I mean, that depends on who’s doing the ranking. Also, Leonard is listed as a RW. We have both Demidov and Caufield also listed as RWs. So who leaves? Do you really think it wise to draft 3 wingers with 3 consecutive top 5 picks, especially when there isn’t an obvious consensus that one is better? People forget how good Reinbacher was in his draft year. He was the consensus top defender in the draft and had a better draft year than anyone out of the NL ever except Matthews (by some analytics anyway) including Roman Josi. This isn’t some scrub. He’s just had some bad injury luck so far and played on a nightmare Kloten team… but even though he missed time and isn’t known for his offensive dominance, he finished as the teams highest scoring Dman. Then he immediately looked great in a small sample with the rocket.
WRT what we have vs the fact Leonard is also a winger, would you rather have all three of caufield, Demidov, and Leonard (meaning one is playing out of position and/or disrupting Laine/slaf … all of which could also lead to someone being unhappy and forcing a trade) and a massive hole in the RD pipeline, or a potential 1RD who should have no issues hitting a top 4 floor plus Demidov and caufield slotted into the top six in their natural roles? (Please don’t say “Demidov can play C” as he rarely has, even if he prefers it).
Considering how wingers are easier to come by, and the fact we have a much bigger need at RD, I’ll take Reinbacher all day. Imagine the massive hole we’d need to fill down the right side if we had Leonard instead of Reinbacher. I’m also more confident in Reinbacher’s game translating to the pros since he already has multiple years of experience playing professional hockey against men (while in school btw). Based on their respective draft profiles, it seems more likely Reinbacher is a top pair defender than Leonard is a top line forward. Everything we’ve seen from Leonard since the draft has come on stacked teams, and we haven’t really had a long look at Reinbacher in a decent situation so that’s why I’m going off of draft profiles. Though Leonard could very well be a top 6 guy and is certainly doing well in the ncaa. I just think at this point, Reinbacher is the better fit overall. Him hitting his ceiling is way better for the Habs than Leonard hitting his cuz Demidov will likely be a much better top line RW. The same can be said for their respective floors as well have several potential future options in the bottom 6 up front, but we don’t have any RD with higher ceilings or floors than Reinbacher.
Finally, what’s that old adage? Defence wins championships? lol…. A big Dman will be more useful in the playoffs than another winger (even if he is big too).
You’re right. It depends on who is doing the ranking. I did not see Reinbacher as the consensus best Dman in that draft. I remember seeing Axel Sandin-Pelikka being the guy. I also remember that Hughes would have grabbed Will Smith in a heartbeat hard San Jose not nabbed him right before us, so I believe Reinbacher was plan B.
He also explained that he used to love her but he had to kill her lol