Kirby Dach Just Had Surgery

I’ve posted about Kirby Dach before and now this one is the worst-case scenario. He just had knee surgery and it appears that it’s on the same knee as last year. It’s his right knee and he’s out for the season.

The Montreal Canadiens have stated that there is no timetable for his return. That’s good because he’ll have all spring and summer to recuperate and strengthen. The hard part about this process is he is going to have to rehab before his usual summer conditioning. That makes things harder for the young pivot.

At 24, he still has a lot to prove to the organization. He’s never hit the 40-point mark and that’s not good considering what the expectations were for him. They might be lowered in the future after this surgery. I’m not going to speculate on what type of surgery he had.

Dach is an RFA in 2026-27 and the Canadiens need to know a few things before then. What they think he is as a center and an offensive performer is paramount. As the dollars get higher in the league because of additional cap space, the Canadiens can’t afford to make a mistake on long-term deals.

Next year is an important one for him and the extra recovery time is good. As the Canadiens become a more competitive team, the hope for them is that Dach continues with them but with better production. Right now that’s an if, but next year might give us a better idea of what he can do on the ice once again.