Injuries To Laine, Reinbacher Hurt Canadiens' Season Before It Even Begins
The Montreal Canadiens were always going to have a difficult season. But losing Patrik Laine and David Reinbacher for months hamstrings their season before it gets started.
When it rains, it pours. In the NHL, teams struggling in the standings are often faced with an even tougher road because of injuries or other calamities.
The latest example of that fact is the plight of the Montreal Canadiens, a team that already had a notably low bar to clear in terms of expectations for the 2024-25 regular season.
The Canadiens were always going to be in tough to do something above-average this year, but matters were made worse for them this week when sniper Patrik Laine became sidelined by a knee injury that will keep them on the sidelines for two to three months. Luckily, he won't need surgery.
Rookie defenseman David Reinbacher also suffered a left knee injury that will keep him out of action for the next five to six months.
Reinbacher may not have been crucial to Montreal's fortunes this season, as he was likely bound for a year of seasoning at the AHL level. But certainly, his development takes a major hit with this injury, and missing so much time can only stunt his personal growth.
Both Laine and Reinbacher should be considered long-term assets for the Habs, and having them out of the lineup will not only hurt the organization's competitiveness at the NHL and AHL levels but morale as well.
(That said, the Canadiens keeping Laine around the team on Monday was a wise move. While Laine can’t contribute on the ice, his place as a key component has not been lost, and having him around on Monday should keep his spirits high and be a sign the team is connected to him as he recuperates, wherever he may be.)
Despite their best intentions, the Canadiens already have sufficient reason why they’re going to have to suffer through another long and difficult season. Canadiens fans will do their best to stay positive and focus on internal improvement from their core of young players, but the notion Montreal can be even on the fringes of the playoff hunt seems like a bridge too far for them in the wake of Laine’s injury.
Canadiens GM Kent Hughes could use the salary cap space they could get if Laine and his $8.7-million-annual cap hit are placed on the long-term injured reserve. But it won’t be nearly so easy to replace Laine’s scoring touch for just a few months, nor will it be a cakewalk to provide experience to the 19-year-old Reinbacher. It was always going to be a hole-filled road in the regular season for Montreal, but moving forward without two key cogs will make life much more difficult for them.
It’s got to stink to think your season is all but over before it begins. But while there is still a chance the Canadiens can pull off a Cinderella-season, far more likely is a year that will have to be tolerated in the name of long-term progress. The Habs will at least have a better picture of what their future will look like when Laine and Reinbacher return. But before they get there, there’ll be many games where they’ll need to try harder to keep pace with the rest of the Atlantic Division and play spoiler.
Tuesday night had another scare when the Ottawa Senators' Ridly Greig hit Montreal's Kirby Dach fairly high, just below the head. Fortunately for him and the Canadiens, Dach returned for the second period and scored. He missed most of last season, so his health will be crucial as well.
People will look back at the beginning of the 2024-25 campaign as another stretch of bad luck for the Canadiens, but they can still overcome it to return them to elite status at hockey’s highest level down the road.
For more reaction to Laine's injury, here's Katie Gaus with Michael Traikos and Ryan Kennedy:
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