In Hainsight: Dach Back On The Ice

If there’s any truth to that lucky number 7 business, Kirby Dach wouldn’t know it. The 23-year-old hulking center who wears number 77 has been struck by the injury ninja much more often than most players. He suffered a concussion with the Hawks in 2019, then took part in the World Junior Championships in 2020, only to suffer a broken wrist. In 2022, he suffered a shoulder injury in his last season with the Hawks. He was also plagued by issues in his first season with the Canadiens, only featuring in 58 games, and just two games into the current season, a big hit by Jarred Tinordi led to torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments.

Dach has had the surgery, and three and a half months later, he’s been cleared to skate lightly on his own. Even though he was lost for the season, the young forward decided to stick around in Montreal and stay in the team’s entourage. He’s often been seen on the bench during practices, watching his teammates getting put through their paces by the coaching staff. Speaking to the media yesterday, Dach explained he doesn’t believe this latest injury has hindered his development, even though it limited him physically.

Head coach Martin St-Louis mentioned Dach was excited about the progress of the group, but at the same time, he wants to be out there and play with his teammates, which is perfectly normal, still, the bench boss believes Dach’s in good spirits as he’s around the team and lot and he’s being involved. St-Louis explains there’s no point in stopping and thinking, “Where would we be if Kirby was playing?”. Losing him for the whole season was a disappointment, but at the same time, it gave opportunities to other players to step up.

To keep Dach in a good place, St-Louis and the coaching staff have involved him in their pre-scout every game day in the morning, it keeps his brain sharp and it’s a way to make sure he’s not too far behind when he’s ready to come back to the ice. As for Juraj Slafkovsky, he told the press that during a tough stretch, Dach spoke to him not only to cheer him up but to give him hockey advice. St-Louis mentioned that not every player has the confidence to go talk to another player about his game, adding it’s great to have.

Furthermore, the coach also explained the coaching staff included Dach in video sessions, which only the coaches are normally privy to this season, to help him keep developing even though it’s off the ice. According to St-Louis, it’s a way to keep developing his brain for the game, and it’s something they do a lot with him.

Does the fact he’s back on his skates mean there’s a chance he could be back before the end of the season? The coach refused to answer the question, simply stating he has no idea what his timeline is like. As for Dach, when asked if he could maybe take part in the World Championships, he simply stated it probably wouldn’t be the smartest thing to do.

Last season, some of the most optimistic Habs fans were salivating at the tough Dach, who could actually turn out to be an even better center than Nick Suzuki, but this season, being lost to injury has made it impossible to keep comparing both players, and they’ll have to wait until next season to keep arguing over who should be the Canadiens’ first center. Personally, I’m not worried about who slots in where in the line-up, all I would like to see is one full season of healthy Dach, then we’d really know how far along he is in his development and where his ceiling might be. Fingers crossed that year turns out to be next season…