The Montreal Canadiens have a few questions facing them for the 2025-26 season. Can Lane Hutson build on a Calder-winning season? Can Patrik Laine rebound and score 40 goals? Do the Canadiens need to acquire another goaltender ? Who will be the team’s second-line center ?
The answer to that last question may soon be answered. Earlier on Monday, August 25th, many Canadian players and prospects hit the ice in Montreal. Kirby Dach was one of the players who was seen taking part.
Canadiens’ Kirby Dach on the Ice
Dach’s health has been speculated on this summer. The latest chapter of that saga is now here, with his appearance at a skate in Montreal.
Marc-Olivier Cook of DansLesCoulisses took a few videos while in attendance at the skate.
The caption on the above tweet translated into English is, “Surprise! Kirby Dach is on the ice this morning in Brossard. Good news.”
In another post, Cook published a video with the following caption:
“Dach looks a bit rusty. Which is normal,” Cook wrote. He continues, “He clearly isn’t at 100% and you can tell that his knee seems to be affecting him a bit.”
âWill he be fully ready for camp, which will start in just a few weeks?â
At one point in the skate, Dach was on the ice with Nick Suzuki , Ivan Demidov, Zachary Bolduc, and Joe Veleno . Canadiens’ director of development, Adam Nicholas, was also in attendance.
Canadians’ Dach Behind on His Injury Rehab?
Earlier in August, a concerning report from Maxime Truman of DansLesCoulisses regarding Dach emerged.
âLet’s just say that the chances of Dach starting his season at the same time as everyone else in two months are still pretty slim,â Truman wrote in early August . âWhich is enough to worry those hoping to see the Canadiens make the playoffs.â
âA second center is more important than a sixth defenseman.â
Truman added to his report that, “Good sources spotted him in an Edmonton gym. (He was) doing squats with weights that look like the ones I used to take when I went to Econofitness, not the ones an NHL player uses.”
We are approximately three weeks removed from that initial report.
The fact that Dach is on the ice skating is a positive sign. The Truman report, combined with Cook’s observations of how Dach is moving around on the ice on Monday, August 25th, line up with one another.
Patience and caution need to be exercised by both the team and the fan base. Skating is one thing. But looking good while skating and being able to withstand physical contact in a game scenario are two different things entirely.
Who Will Be the Canadiens’ Second-Line Center?
At this stage of the summer, a significant trade to bring in a young center is unlikely. Signing a player to a PTO isn’t out of the question, but the team has announced no PTOs at the time of this writing. So, where does that leave the Canadiens regarding their second-line center position?
It’s reasonable to suggest that once Dach is healthy, he’ll get a crack at the second-line center role. Until then, the Canadians have a few options.
Looking at the depth chart, Alex Newhook is the logical first choice. Veleno and Laine would be dark-horse candidates to fill in on that second line. Laine has spent some time playing center, despite being a natural winger. Veleno has played top-six forward minutes in the past but is better suited for a bottom-six role.
No matter which way this cookie crumbles, the second-line center position will be a storyline that dominates training camp and the best part of the season for the Canadiens.
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