The Montreal Canadiens announced that forward Kirby Dach would be out of the lineup for the next two to four weeks because of an upper-body injury.
The Montreal Canadiens announced on Tuesday morning that forward Kirby Dach would be out for two to four weeks because of an upper-body injury. The Albertan sustained the injury early in Sunday night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks when he was blindsided by forward Jeffrey Viel.
This is just the latest in a long series of setbacks for the 25-year-old, who recently played in his 300th NHL game during his seven seasons in the league. The team’s announcement doesn’t delve into details of the injury. Given the nature of the hit, it was thought to perhaps be a concussion, but players who deal with concussions are often listed as day-to-day.
If Dach ends up missing four weeks, he will miss the rest of the regular season, which is a huge blow to a player trying to earn a contract for next season. The 6-foot-4 forward has already missed 34 games in this campaign, resuming play on January 20 after being injured on November 15.
While some may say this is just bad luck striking once again, there has to be a concern for the Canadiens about his body’s ability to sustain the grind of the NHL’s physical play. The injury will take some of the heat off Martin St-Louis’ lineup decisions since he now finds himself with an extra chair on the third line, which will be occupied tonight by Zachary Bolduc.
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