The Canadiens are going to be without Patrik Laine for multiple months.
The Montreal Canadiens have announced that forward Patrik Laine will be out for the next three to four months after undergoing surgery for a core muscle injury.
With this news, Laine will not be back in the lineup for the Canadiens until at least late January. However, if he ends up needing four months to recover, he would not return to game action until late February. Thus, this is undoubtedly tough news for both the Canadiens and Laine.
Laine has not played for the Canadiens since their Oct. 16 matchup against the Nashville Predators. The 2016 second-overall pick had a rough start to the season with the Habs before suffering his injury, as he recorded one assist and a minus-3 rating in five games.
In 52 games this past season with the Canadiens, Laine recorded 20 goals, 13 assists, and 33 points. However, he was most impactful during the man advantage, as he recorded 15 power-play goals and 19 power-play points in 2024-25 for the Canadiens.
Now, with this news, the Canadiens are going to be without one of their skilled wingers for a good chunk of the year. Here's to hoping that Laine's recovery goes smoothly and he suffers no setbacks along the way.