The Montreal Canadiens’ 2026-27 NHL season is officially underway (as of last week).
The Habs have played two games in the early going and are 1-0-1. Montreal’s next contest is a pretty big one, as the Canadiens will host the Carolina Hurricanes in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch from last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Before that Hurricanes game, Canadiens’ head coach Martin St. Louis provided some injury updates, and there is a major one regarding Kaiden Guhle, who has yet to strap up the ice skates this year.
Canadiens’ Kaiden Guhle ‘Close’ to Returning
Per the NHL’s transactions tracker, Martin St. Louis indicated that Kaiden Guhle is close to returning to the ice:
“Head coach Martin St. Louis said Monday that Guhle (groin) is getting close to being ready to play, Stu Cowan of The Montreal Gazette reports.”
CBSSports.com’s RotoWire staff wrote (about Guhle):
“St. Louis said that he isn’t sure whether Guhle will require one or two more weeks to recover, but the 24-year-old defenseman appears to be trending in the right direction following minor adductor surgery that he underwent during the offseason. Guhle made 39 regular-season appearances last year and recorded two goals, nine assists, 86 hits, 63 blocked shots and 41 PIM while averaging 19:28 of ice time.”
Guhle injured his groin during the Eastern Conference Finals last season against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Reports indicate that Guhle has returned to practice, which signals his return could be imminent. The Canadiens obviously want to take his recovery slowly and not rush him back into game action if he’s still laboring in the adductor region of his body.
More on Kaiden Guhle’s Injury Status
ProHockeyRumors.com’s Ethan Hetu wrote (about Guhle’s health):
“The 24-year-old defenseman’s health status has been something Canadiens fans have unfortunately gotten used to keeping an eye on. The Edmonton native was limited to just 39 games last season due to injuries, and just 55 the year before. When healthy, he’s played like a legitimate top-four defenseman, but those moments of health have only infrequently been long stretches of good health. The hope in Montreal is likely that the two games he’s already missed will count as the bulk of games Guhle is sidelined for in 2026-27.”
While the Canadiens already have a very strong core of young talent, Kaiden Guhle has emerged as a strong blue-line presence over the past few seasons.
Canadiens’ Martin St. Louis Provides Major Kaiden Guhle Injury Update