Canadiens’ Kaiden Guhle to make season debut against Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle will make his 2026-27 season debut on Saturday after missing the first four games of the year while recovering from offseason surgery.
Guhle, 24, underwent a minor operation on his adductor muscle over the summer, addressing a lingering issue that had partially limited him to just 39 games during the 2025-26 regular season.
The 6’3″ left-shot defender collected two goals and 11 points while averaging 19:28 of ice time in his 39 games with the Canadiens last year, adding eight assists and logging 20:29 per night in 19 playoff contests as Montreal reached the Eastern Conference Final.
Guhle’s return comes a day after the Canadiens cleared up a roster spot by trading depth defender Jayden Struble to the Nashville Predators in exchange for a 2027 second-round pick. According to Daily Faceoff’s line combinations page, Guhle is expected to start on a pairing with Mike Matheson in Saturday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings at the Bell Centre.
The Canadiens originally selected Guhle in the first round (No. 16 overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. The Edmonton, Alta. product spent his junior career with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders and Edmonton Oil Kings before turning pro in the Canadiens organization in 2022.
Save for three games with the AHL’s Laval Rocket while the WHL was on pause in the 2020-21 season, Guhle has spent his entire professional career in the NHL with the Canadiens. He has missed considerable time with various injuries over parts of four NHL seasons to date, topping out at just 70 games with the Canadiens played in the 2023-24 campaign.
In 208 career NHL games with the Canadiens, Guhle has collected 18 goals, 69 points, and 171 penalty minutes. He’s added eight assists in 24 playoff contests with the club.
The Canadiens and Red Wings are scheduled to hit the ice in Montreal on Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
