Canadiens’ Handling of Dach Will Define the Rebuild

Unfortunately, Dach’s development has stalled. The frequency he has suffered injuries has come at the expense of a loss of muscle building and endurance, likely a natural fear of re-injury, and missing out on building in-game experience. It’s also difficult to progress skills training while also rehabbing from injuries, especially with the frequency he has suffered them, basically, every season he has been in Montreal. He is again missing games due to injury, but the good news is that it may just be minor, as he is still travelling with the team on the western road trip and will dress against the Edmonton Oilers. 

It’s more than just having interrupted his offseason training and practice routines by limiting time on ice and access to constructive coaching feedback sessions, but it also has an impact on the room, as it can disrupt team dynamics.  

Canadiens Behind Eight Ball 

Montreal acquired Dach with the expectation that he’d be the centre on a second line behind Nick Suzuki. The plan, if successful, would help stabilize the forward group and allow for more stable line combinations. Yes, they made the 2025 Playoffs, but his history of injuries has caused some issues with the Canadiens on this front, which in turn has slowed the organization from being capable of taking the next steps in the rebuild. 

Over the last two seasons, his right knee issues have limited him to 59 games, scoring only 10 goals and 24 points with a minus-27 rating. In 2022-23, he produced at a 54-point pace for an 82-game season. The 2024-25 season saw him finish with a paltry minus-29 rating and poor possession metrics despite being sheltered by head coach Martin St. Louis. In those 57 games, he started 70.2% of his shifts in the offensive zone in all situations, and his team-controlled play less than 50% of the time with him on the ice, which is not sustainable. Posting below team-average possession statistics, with him being sheltered at such a high ratio is a significant red flag. 

His long absences mean the coaching staff can’t consistently integrate him into a line with a set pair of wingers; this forces frequent lineup changes that make it difficult for players to build chemistry. For example, when he went down with the ACL injury, the team promptly shifted Alex Newhook into his slot, yet he was better suited as a winger. This season, Oliver Kapanen has taken over the second line centre role, and in the small sample size thus far, seems to be able to handle the responsibilities. He has built chemistry with his wingers, Newhook and the odds-on favourite for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in Ivan Demidov.

Also, it impacts the power play as Dach’s absence is depriving the second unit of their planned option at centre. For the time being, Suzuki has been double-shifted on the power play. In the context of a rebuild, line stability matters. It isn’t just about building chemistry on a line; it is also about player development, and the inability to count on Dach has undermined both issues and will impact future planning by Hughes. 

Canadiens Need to Find Stability 

Dach is a skilled young player, but the issue is that he is often out of the lineup. This means they could offer him a contract extension at a very cheap rate for one year. He is currently in the final year of a four-year contract that pays him $3.36 million, but that doesn’t solve the issue of a reliable second-line centre. This is where Hughes will need to act. He has been exceedingly patient with Dach, who does have immense raw talent, but hasn’t been able to put it all together due to injuries. Yet hockey is a business, and he may become a winger for Montreal, but this is where the Canadiens will need to move on from Dach as an option at centre and find someone who has proven they can fill the role. 

Hughes’ approach to building a salary cap structure where his core has been signed for fair, but slightly below market values, leaving money on the table, has provided him an opportunity to either wait to sign someone as an unrestricted free agent or to go out and trade for someone that can fill their biggest need. With someone who is proven and less likely to face the same injury concerns, there would no longer be any uncertainty in regard to the team environment or on-ice strategy.  

Given Dach’s youth and promise, the hope had been that a full recovery would allow him to resume the centre role the Canadiens envisioned. But his availability and performance limitations have been a notable drag on the team’s chemistry and have impacted on-ice performance as well. The time for patience is coming to an end. Hughes has shown that he is preparing for this with his desire to build space under the salary cap prior to the trade deadline, but with how competitive the Atlantic Division is, he may need to move sooner than that.