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'Kirby Dach, by some measures, is fitter than ever'

Originally posted on Dose.ca | Last updated Jun 23, 2025 6:08 PM ET

It’s looking more and more like there’s a real chance that Kirby Dach will be the Canadiens’ second center next year. The reality of the trade market makes it very difficult for Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton to go after a true top-6 center, and we don’t expect the Habs to pay top dollar for a free agent either.

Especially since we don’t even know if a true top-6 center will be on the autonomous market.

Which brings us back to Dach, who is already in Montreal. Two years ago, Dach looked like a guy who would be a long-term fixture on the Montreal top-6… but injuries have cost him a ton of hockey in the last two years.

Unfortunately, Kirby Dach is the perfect example of how injuries can derail a career. Those early years in your career are so critical to development.

Not only did he miss large chunks of that development, but he also plays with the thoughts of injury in the back of his mind…. pic.twitter.com/CLmAlohj2A

– Data Puck (@DataPuck) May 31, 2025

So, for the second summer in a row, there’s a lot riding on Dach. So right now, the Habs need some good news about their center.

And that’s just as well, because Arpon Basu, writing for The Athletic, has some pretty good news:

Dach’s rehabilitation is going very well. Some of his conditioning measures are higher than ever. – Arpon Basu

We know that this season, the forward’s fitness had been criticized. It was felt that he hadn’t arrived at camp in top form, and this may well have contributed to his difficult season (prior to his injury).

However, if Dach ever arrives fit and able to demonstrate that the player of two years ago still exists, it would be reassuring for the Habs. Dach isn’t a perfect fit (he’s right-handed, like every other center in town apart from Alex Newhook), but in an NHL where finding good center players is a mission impossible, a Dach comeback would really help the Canadiens.

The Habs would need Dach to become their Dylan Strome, a center who is experiencing a late bloomer after a difficult first few years. Perhaps the season just ended was the wake-up call Dach needed.

We’ll see what happens at fall camp, but Dach will have to be ready to help his club’s cause. And the good news is that he seems to be taking it seriously.

Overtime

– Here are the Habs’ picks for the upcoming draft.

Barring any trades, the #Habs have the following picks for this year’s #NHLDraft:
Round 1:
– 16th
– 17th
Round 2:
– 41st
– 49th
Round 3:
– 79th
– 81st
– 82nd
Round 4:
– 108th
– 113th
Round 5:
– 145th
Round 6:
– 177th
Round 7:
– 209th

– Priyanta Emrith (@HabsInHighHeels) June 23, 2025