Patrik Laine out 3-4 months after undergoing surgery in New York

Last Saturday, October 18th, the Habs announced that the hard-shooting forward was listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury. A few days later, it was brought out that Laine was seeking a second opinion on said injury. This cascade of events has led us to today's update of Laine's surgery and 3-4 month sidelining.

The Finnish forward has historically struggled with managing his health, most notably his knee injury sustained in last year's pre-season match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Laine has had a complex medical history before that season, not playing a full 82-game schedule since his second and third seasons in the NHL.

Laine had a relatively successful and promising offseason and pre-season. In fact, according to Laine and the coaching staff the outlook was rather bright on what number 92 might be able to unlock this year, especially because he is due for a new contract at the conclusion of the 2025-2026 offseason.

To start the year, Laine was mostly relegated to fourth-line minutes, and in the five games he was on the ice for managed only to pick up a lone assist. This setup was mostly do to figuring out where the place of new mainstays Ivan Demidov, Oliver Kapanen and Zachary Bolduc were going to slot in, as well as the lack of success his last season pairing with the now returning Kirby Dach.

With this official diagnosis and announcement, it is possible the Habs could put Laine on LTIR (Long Term Injured Reserve) and gain additional cap relief. Under the newly implemented cap rules, the Canadiens would be eligible for a league-average $3.82 million in cap relief if Laine were to return this season. If, for some reason, he were to miss the entire season and he was placed on SELTIR (Season Ending Long Term Injured Reserve), they would be eligible for Laine’s full $8.7 million in cap-relief.

As the Canadiens are on a western road trip at the time of the announcement, it is unlikely there will be any further announcement of roster moves until the team arrives back in Montreal.