Kirby Dach: don’t rule out a 'David Reinbacher treatment' on his return to the game

Once again this year, one of the big stories surrounding the Habs camp is the state of Kirby Dach’s health. We’re wondering if his knee will be able to hold out for 82 games… but more importantly, if he’ll be ready to play from the very first game.Because right now, that’s far from assured.Seeing him on the ice in Brossard in the last few days is a good sign. That said, we’re wondering how the Canadiens are going to handle all this… and Arpon Basu has a good point to make on the subject. In an excerpt from the latest The Basu and Godin Notebook, Basu discusses the Dach case, and explains that even if Dach is ready for camp, that doesn’t mean he’ll be in the line-up from day #1.

Because the club could opt for a “David Reinbacher treatment”. https://youtu.be/rO9lcb6oCes?si=wo5rxUtVU8nv1TdX&t=324 [content-ads]Because yes, in reality, we saw a great example last year of how the Habs handled a serious knee injury. Reinbacher suffered the injury at camp… and when he returned to play, he had to follow a strict protocol:he wouldn’t play two games in 24 hours, and he skipped practices to avoid overloading his knee.And in reality, such a protocol is even more important for Dach, who already has a history of knee injuries. The club needs to make sure it gets him back to 100% fitness, because the young forward can’t afford another knee injury.A third in three years would be devastating… and could put the rest of his career in jeopardy. So, as with Reinbacher, the Canadiens have every reason in the world to play it safe with their center forward’s knee. And yes, there’s a real chance that he’ll miss the start of the year even if he’s in camp… or that he’ll return to play following a very strict protocol.[spacer title=’Overtime’]- What do you think?