When Kent Hughes brought Kirby Dach to the Montreal Canadiens in 2022, he hoped the forward would turn his career around. Initially, things looked promising, but injuries soon plagued the Saskatchewan native again.
Dach has faced numerous injuries throughout his career, including during his junior hockey days, which have made him a more fragile player. Simon ‘Snake’ Boisvert, known for his candid opinions, is starting to lose faith in Dach and suggests that the Canadiens should consider trading him if he gets injured again.
Boisvert believes that the Canadiens should take advantage of Dach’s current value while he remains healthy, arguing that the next injury could be detrimental to his career. He likens the situation to what happened with the Philadelphia Flyers and Nolan Patrick and even questions whether the Chicago Blackhawks decided to move on from Dach by trading him to Montreal.
I find myself agreeing with Boisvert to some extent; the Canadiens need to evaluate Dach’s situation before it’s too late. Co-host Mathias Brunet shares this sentiment, stating that Dach’s future will hinge on his contract negotiations in a few years (his current contract ends in the summer of 2026), rather than the next injury he suffers.
However, I take issue with Boisvert’s approach. He seems to single out Dach without applying the same logic to other players. If we were to follow that train of thought, we would also need to consider parting ways with Kaiden Guhle, Juraj Slafkovsky, Arber Xhekaj, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Alex Newhook, and several others who frequently face injuries.
For the moment, it’s important to give Dach time, especially since he missed nearly a whole season. We can hope that he soon regains his confidence and gradually returns to his previous level of performance post-surgery.
