Thankfully, unsubstantiated reports and subsequent suggestions last offseason that Montreal Canadiens forward Kirby Dach, who’s rehabilitating his knee, wouldn’t be ready for 2025-26 appear to have been premature (to be polite). Despite not having played him in the team’s Friday scrimmage, head coach Martin St. Louis told the media the plan was still to get him in preseason action (from ‘Dach va jouer durant le calendrier preparatoire, confirme St-Louis,’ Le Journal de Montreal, Sept. 19, 2025). That’s the good news.
The maybe-not-bad per se, but more so thought-provoking news, is how, at least to start, the Canadiens have Dach between Patrik Laine and rookie Ivan Demidov (from ‘L’audacieux deuxieme trio prend (deja) forme,’ La Presse, Sept. 18, 2025). Unfortunately, that’s an experiment that’s doomed to fail, at least if the desired outcome is some combination of:
Developing Demidov, who’s a legitimate Calder Memorial Trophy candidate
Actually finding sustainable success scoring goals
Obviously, on paper, the idea of putting former, but still-young second (Laine; 2016), third (Dach; 2019) and fifth-overall picks (Demidov; 2024) together on the same line is intriguing. However, that specific paper would be leaving out the injury histories of Laine, who suffered a serious knee one last preseason, and Dach, who’s current knee injury is the second straight season-ending one he’s suffered (to the same knee, no less).
Dach and Laine Look to Rebound in 2025-26
You need only look back to last season for reasons as to why this shouldn’t work. To his credit, Laine was a huge contributor to the team’s success. Once he came back in early December, after having opted against surgery, the team surged out of the Eastern Conference basement to reach the postseason by playing .621 hockey the rest of the way.
Individually speaking, Laine scored a far-from-insignificant 20 goals and 33 points in 52 games, including an impressive team-leading 15 on the power play (despite missing as much time as he did). However, at even strength, Laine’s lack of mobility (and resulting effectiveness) was readily apparent. That ineffectiveness didn’t exactly help solve the issues in his game away from the puck, which had always been present, either.
Meanwhile, coming back from his first injury, Dach struggled for most of his 2024-25 season, only getting in a groove and producing consistently to end the calendar year. From Dec. 28 on, he scored 13 points in his last 23 games, production that merely came close to replicating the pace at which he scored in his successful first season with the team (38 points in 58 games in 2022-23). He ultimately ended 2024-25 with just 22 points in 57 games, hinting at the potential for similar (if not greater) struggles this coming season.
Dach Still a Potential Solution at Centre
The hope is clear, that Dach’s surgery will have been a complete success and an offseason of relative rest will work wonders for Laine. It’s worth noting a healthy Dach, who lives up to the potential he displayed in 2022-23, would solve a lot of issues at centre for the Canadiens. Having been acquired to be their No. 2 pivot at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Dach represents the best option to fill the role currently in the organization, with possible exception to prospect Michael Hage, who’s realistically a few years away from the show.
Montreal Canadiens forward Kirby Dach – (David Kirouac-Imagn Images)
If Dach fails to works out, general manager Kent Hughes will have to go back to the drawing board. He’ll probably have to resort to trading away assets to acquire a stop-gap measure at the very least, without any guarantees they’ll work out to the same degree most everyone acknowledges a healthy and mentally engaged Dach would.
Related: Host Canadiens Steal Show by Getting Slafkovsky, Dach at 2022 Draft
With that, it makes undeniable sense to try Dach out in that role to start training camp and hopefully into the season. However, it’s beyond wishful thinking to believe both he and Laine will be able to adequately complement a burgeoning Demidov, with scouts generally having expressed concerns over the 19-year-old’s skating as well. Combined, they’re likelier still to serve as a detriment to Demidov instead. Putting the rookie in a position where he might conceivably be anchored by not one but two redemption stories gone wrong is too much to ask, regardless of the scouting reports that project him as a superstar talent.
So, why even take the risk?
Newhook a Logical Alternative to Laine
The Canadiens currently have Oliver Kapanen filling in for Dach on the line with Demidov and Laine instead, which makes sense. He’s a logical alternative to Alex Newhook, who was for all intents and purposes tasked with replacing Dach down the middle when he got injured the last two seasons, having experienced varying degrees of success there.
The Canadiens currently have Newhook on a line with the newly acquired Zachary Bolduc and rookie Owen Beck, who projects as a centre himself. While it’s understandable to want to shelter Beck to a degree by putting him on a line with a second centre, Newhook’s 44.6% success rate taking faceoffs since joining the Habs is an indication he could serve them better on the wing, namely opposite Demidov. Known for his speed, Newhook is likelier to complement him than Laine, whose usage at even strength could be minimized by potentially deploying him lower down the lineup and as a weapon on the power play.
Obviously, these are mere suggestions. Until the Canadiens have the opportunity to see Dach in game action alongside Demidov and Laine, they can’t say for sure that it won’t work. However, while some may say they have an obligation to explore all possibilities this training camp, they also have a limited amount of games to do so. Prioritizing the experimentation of line combinations that are likelier to succeed, especially with so much at stake like Demidov’s development, seems like a better use of team resources and time, especially taking into account Dach’s ongoing recovery.
Dach should, fingers crossed, be ready for the start of the season, at which point you’d expect the Canadiens to want him (and Demidov) to hit the ground running. While the well-documented struggles of the Laine, Dach, Newhook line last season translated to the Habs effectively making the playoffs without a working second line, they should obviously aim to correct course on as many fronts as possible in 2025-26. Demidov gives them options to do just that, but he hasn’t proven himself to be a miracle worker, at least not yet.
As a whole, when approaching the Demidov situation, the Canadiens need to learn walk before they run. Taking into consideration the need for Dach (and Laine) to find their legs to start this season, the expression is especially apt on all fronts.
