Not long ago, the idea of acquiring Elias Pettersson might have seemed impossible for the Montreal Canadiens. But as the Vancouver Canucks consider trading their star player more and more seriously, a golden opportunity seemed within reach.
Unfortunately, that opportunity was shattered, and the reason has a name: Kirby Dach.
Elias Pettersson, once seen as the ideal center to lead the Canucks to the Stanley Cup, is now a shadow of his former self.
With a whopping eight-year, $92.8 million contract, he was expected to become the premier center Vancouver had been seeking for years.
But this season, his performances have been disastrous. His attitude is even more so.
Beyond the numbers, Pettersson has become a source of internal tension. His toxic relationship with JT Miller poisons the locker room, and his attitude considered arrogant and detached has exasperated his teammates and managers.
In Vancouver, trade rumors are increasing, and the Canucks are actively seeking a young center and a high first-round pick to rebuild their future.
Hence the rumor sending Tage Thompson from Buffalo to Vancouver,
This is where the Montreal Canadiens could have intervened. With previously promising assets like Kirby Dach, a young center player with an imposing size and obvious offensive potential, Montreal had a trump card in hand.
Dach could have been the centerpiece of a trade for Pettersson, a player who would immediately change the trajectory of the Canadian.
But that dream was shattered. Dach, instead of becoming the center the Canucks had hoped for, crashed his career.
When Kirby Dach arrived in Montreal, he represented a huge hope. His costly acquisition (13th pick overall) allowed the Canadiens to get their hands on a player who was to become a pillar of their reconstruction.
But a series of serious injuries and a lack of consistency destroyed his value. This season, his statistics are a nightmare: 9 points (2 meager goals) in 34 games, a differential of -24, and confidence in pieces.
The Canucks, who might have been interested in Dach as part of a trade for Pettersson, no longer want to hear from him. He is seen as too fragile a player, incapable of performing under pressure.
Dach could have been the key to luring Pettersson to Montreal, but today he is no longer even a viable option for such a trade.
Kirby Dach's failure isn't limited to his on-ice performance; it deprives Montreal of a rare opportunity to acquire a franchise player.
Pettersson, despite his recent setbacks, remains an elite player capable of transforming a team. With a player like him, the Canadian could have solidified his attack for the years to come and considerably accelerated his reconstruction.
But without a player like Dach to satisfy the Canucks' demands, Montreal is out of the running. The Canucks are demanding a top young center and a high draft pick, a price the Canadiens can no longer pay.
For Vancouver, the options are narrowing. If Pettersson is to be traded, the Canucks will need to find a team that can meet their lofty demands.
Buffalo's reportedly offered Tage Thompson was rejected, with Pettersson refusing to waive his no-trade clause to the Sabres.
Montreal, once a logical destination, no longer has the assets necessary to complete such an exchange.
Kirby Dach's mess is more than an individual problem; it represents a lost opportunity for Montreal.
Dach's future in Montreal is now uncertain, and his 4-year contract at $3.362 million per season until 2026 is looking more and more like a liability for the team.
Elias Pettersson could have been a transformative player for the Montreal Canadiens. But Kirby Dach, who could have been one of the centerpieces of this potential trade, destroyed that possibility with his injuries, his lack of consistency, and his free fall in terms of value.
For Montreal, the observation is clear: Dach ruined everything.
And while Vancouver explores other options, the Canadian is forced to watch from afar, aware that this dream opportunity may never come again.
When Kirby Dach was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens, optimism reigned. This young player, once drafted third overall by the Chicago Blackhawks, was supposed to become the face of the team's rebuild.
With his imposing size, his vision of the game and his offensive potential, he had everything to succeed.
But today, Dach embodies failure, frustration and missed opportunities. His career, marked by injuries and shameful mental fragility, turned into a real nightmare, both for him and for the organization.
Everything changed during the 2023-2024 season, when Dach suffered a double ligament tear in his right knee. This serious injury, which kept him sidelined for almost a year, left obvious after-effects.
Dach is no longer the same player. He is slow, hesitant and severely lacks confidence. Every presence on the ice is a fight, not only against his opponents, but against himself.
The fluidity and creativity that once made him strong are gone, replaced by a pee-wee nervousness with every touch of the puck.
But Dach's problems don't end there. Mentally, the player seems deeply shaken. In Montreal, a market where every error is scrutinized, he has become an easy target for criticism.
The media, fans and even former coaches like Michel Therrien did not hesitate to ridicule his performances.
In response, Dach disabled comments on his social media, unable to stand the constant attacks.
According to sources close to the team, he isolates himself more and more, spending the majority of his time alone in his Griffintown apartment, far from the storm of public life.
Even his own words betray his dismay. After a particularly difficult match, Dach joked that maybe he should try shooting from the left because it was so ineffective.
This clumsy attempt at humor poorly hides a deep inner distress. It is clear that the player, once touted as a future star, now doubts himself and his place in the NHL.
In Chicago, Dach already bore the label of a fragile, nonchalant and lazy player. These criticisms, which seemed unfair at the time, take on a completely different dimension today.
Injuries have shattered his confidence, and his inability to live up to expectations confirms the doubts that hovered over him. His decline is not just a problem for him, but for the Canadian as a whole.
Kirby Dach, who was supposed to embody the future of the Canadian, is today just one player among others, incapable of carrying the weight of expectations.
His fall to hell is a brutal reminder that raw talent is not enough in a market like Montreal. For Dach, time is running out.
Unless there is a spectacular turnaround, he risks becoming another name added to the long list of broken promises in Montreal.
For the Canadian, this descent into hell represents not only a disappointment, but the missed opportunity… of a lifetime…
