No update was provided on Kirby Dach as of Tuesday morning, but we understand that the prognosis is not rosy. In any case, it seems certain that the Habs are preparing to begin a long sequence without their great center player. Which starts with the visit of the Minnesota Wild.
After Dach was injured Saturday, the organization indicated a “significant” absence awaited him. The Sportsnet network suggested that the attacker suffered tears to his anterior cruciate ligament and medial ligament. The team has not yet confirmed this hypothesis, but if it were true, the number 77’s season could already be over after two short matches.
On Tuesday, the young man appeared at the players’ bench to attend his teammates’ optional morning training. He seemed in a good mood, alongside Alex Newhook, his replacement at center.
Martin St-Louis stressed that Dach must above all “keep his morale high.” “It’s hard for a young player to go through what he’s going through. We will help him,” said the head coach.
Bad luck resolutely attacks the man who missed 38 and 24 games, respectively, in 2020-2021 and 2022-2023, each time due to injuries.
Moreover, St-Louis did not give details on the composition of its formation against the Wild, except to confirm that Michael Pezzetta would play his first game of the season and that Samuel Montembeault would defend the Montreal net for a second game in a row.
In training the day before, Josh Anderson seemed to be the chosen one to complete Newhook’s duo with Juraj Slafkovsky. And Rafaël Harvey-Pinard told NHL.com that he would find himself, for his part, on the first line alongside Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.
Annoyed by the questions about his new combinations, the coach limited himself to saying that “of course we have to juggle a little”. “You’re going to see the lines in the warm-up period” before the game, he added.
Tuesday evening’s game could, moreover, be the last of Marc-André Fleury’s career at the Bell Center. The goalkeeper himself raised this possibility on Monday and told the Journal de Montréal that some 80 friends and members of his family would be in the stands to encourage him.
The Quebecer will count on at least one more fan, very close to the ice too. Jake Allen, who will be Montembeault’s assistant, was rave about Fleury.
“I hope this won’t be his last match! », spontaneously exclaimed this astute observer of the goalkeeping profession.
“One of the things I respect most in goalkeepers is longevity,” he said. It’s really difficult to play for that long. [Fleury] is one of the best of all time. How many guys can do that? »
At 38 years old, the native of Sorel is indeed approaching the mark of 1,000 games in the NHL.
Allen also admires the fact that Fleury has “his own style”; that his game is “wild” and athletic at the same time.
“I think he’s an athlete first. Many of today’s goalkeepers are robots – but good robots! For a long time, that was the essence of our position: using your technique, but also your athleticism, your ability to compete… [Fleury] is fun to watch. People come to watch games for the goals scored, but I think he’s as exciting a spectacle as the good scorers. »
The meeting between the Canadiens and the Wild, played at the Bell Centre, will begin at 7 p.m.