*Photo from the Chicago Sun Times*
One of the newest members of one of the original 6 teams is now locked in. The Montreal Canadiens and C/RW Kirby Dach have agreed to a 4 year, $13.45 million deal, according to an announcement by the Canadiens on Wednesday.
On the first night of the NHL Draft back in July, Dach was traded to the Canadiens by the Chicago Blackhawks as part of a 3 team trade with the New York Islanders. The Blackhawks got a first and second round pick from Montreal in exchange for Dach.
When asked about the trade back in July, Dach said that "I think it will be good for me to kind of have a fresh start, be the player I know I can be. I feel like I'm pretty offensive and smart with the puck and can make plays, but also a reliable, two-way centerman that's big and strong down the middle of the ice that skates well and can make plays."
The contract for Dach marks his second professional contract. After making $925,000 annually in his previous deal, Dach gets a significant increase in salary. He'll make an average of $3.362 million annually in his new deal. There are no incentives, and Dach will still be an RFA at the end of the deal.
Last season was Dach's 3rd with the Blackhawks. He ended the season with career highs in both goals and assists, notching 9 and 17 respectively. He recorded a -18 plus/minus rating over an average of 18:03 of ice time per game, playing in a career high 70 games.
In his career, Dach has 3 NHL seasons under his belt, all with the Blackhawks. Over that time, Dach has 19 goals and 40 assists to his name, recording a -22 plus/minus rating across an average of 16:31 of ice time per game in 152 career regular season games. Dach has an additional one goal and 5 assists in 9 career playoff games.
Dach was a former first round pick, being chosen with the 3rd overall pick by the Blackhawks in the 2019 NHL Draft. Injuries have been a significant factor in his career to date. While playing as the captain for Team Canada in the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship, Dach sustained a broken wrist, and only played 18 games in the short 2021 season due to injury.
By signing Dach, he is officially locked into Montreal's roster for the coming season. Dach was one of Montreal's big adds in the offseason, joining Evgenii Dadonov and Sean Monahan.
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