The Montreal Canadiens are hoping things turnaround this week, after a disastrous week. In addition to three consecutive regulation losses, the club announced extended absences for defenseman Kaiden Guhle, and forwards Alex Newhook and Kirby Dach.
The Habs announced on Sunday that Dach will miss four to six weeks with a fractured foot. The forward completed Saturday’s game but it appears that he sustained the injury by blocking a shot. In the optimistic scenario of a four-week absence, Dach would miss 14 games, excluding the three matches he already missed earlier this season.
“”I told him 2026 will be his year. It’s easier said than done, but you must stay positive,” said Martin St. Louis following Sunday’s practice.
The 24-year-old has stacked injuries throughout his young career. Since joining the organization in 2022-23, he has not played more than 58 games in a season. He’s trending to a similar number this season.
Dach was playing a more complete game in this opening segment of the season, the final year of his contract. This injury can be filed in the bad luck column.
“There’s a lot of blocked shots in the NHL these days. It’s part of the game. It sucks that an injury happens but it comes with the sport,” St. Louis noted at the CN Sports Complex. “These things happen during every game, and there’s bad luck sometimes. We won’t ask guys to stop blocking shots because they might get injured.”
Depth Being Tested
The Canadiens will be looking to snap the three-game losing streak on Monday in Columbus against the Blue Jackets. Following the quick trip to Ohio, they will host the Washington Capitals on Thursday, and the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at the Bell Centre.
The recent injuries to Newhook and Dach open the door for other players to step up. Jared Davidson made his NHL debut on Saturday and passed the audition with four shots in 7:14 of ice time. Joshua Roy joined the team in Columbus for a second stint this year. In his first recall, he dressed for one game in Calgary and then scratched for the next three contests.
Monday’s lineup projects to have four rookie forwards to face the Blue Jackets. With the Canadiens looking to take a step forward in their rebuild, Kent Hughes is certainly looking to add experience to the roster. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported, during Hockey Night in Canada, that Montreal showed interest in signing free agent David Kampf before he signed with Vancouver.
Revamped Power Play
Sunday’s practice in Brossard focused on the power play. The team’s failure to convert on their last 17 opportunities makes this no surprise. In Saturday’s 3-2 loss to the Boston Bruins, the Habs went 0-for-7 with the man advantage, including two extended five-on-three.
St. Louis chose not to elaborate on the specifics of the practice, but he made several changes to the formation. Zachary Bolduc returned to the top unit for the first time since October 22. He scored his last goal on the power play that night, but Ivan Demidov replaced him for the following match.
Ivan Demidov practised on the second unit while Oliver Kapanen filled in for Dach. Montreal’s power play converted seven of 13 chances in the first five games with Demidov on the top unit, before the current slump began. Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are rotating into the spot created by Newhook’s injury, with Brendan Gallagher and Noah Dobson rounding out the group.
Rocket Notes
The Laval Rocket are back home after collecting three wins during their four-game road trip. The week began with a 3-1 loss against the Springfield Thunderbirds (St. Louis Blues) on Wednesday, 5-2 win against the Hartford Wolf Pack (New York Rangers) on Saturday, and 3-0 victory against the Providence Bruins (Boston) on Sunday.
The Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) visit Place Bell on Wednesday, followed by a double header against the Belleville Senators (Ottawa) starting on Friday.
Here are some notes from the week.
- Jacob Fowler’s 26 save performance earned him a third shutout of the year. He currently co-leads the AHL in that category.
- On Saturday, as Davidson made his NHL debut, Owen Beck and Florian Xhekaj scored for Laval. Beck snapped a five‑game drought, while Xhekaj ended a nine‑game slump. Both players were late cuts from Canadiens camp. Roy’s recall led Pascal Vincent to promote Xhekaj to the top line on Sunday.
- This weekend showed that Riley Kidney’s time with the organization is running out. When the Rocket needed forwards for Sunday’s game in Providence, the club chose Joe Dunlap and Mark Estapa over Kidney. Kidney has six points in eight games with the Trois-Rivières Lions and is playing out the final year of his contract with the Canadiens.
