Mike Matheson out 2 weeks as Canadiens injuries pile up
TLDR: The Canadiens will be without Mike Matheson for 2 weeks with a lower-body injury, and captain Nick Suzuki also sits out tonight against Pittsburgh.
Matheson skipped Thursday's 5-2 win over Dallas, and on Saturday morning the team said how long he would be out.
Montreal will feel this one. Matheson is averaging 23:45 a night, 2nd on the team, and has 4 points (1 goal, 3 assists) in 8 games. Two weeks without your 2nd-busiest defenseman means the blue line gets reshuffled and somebody further down the depth chart is about to play a lot more hockey than he expected.
He also isn't the only regular missing tonight. The Habs ruled the captain out again.
This will be Suzuki's 5th straight game out with an upper-body injury. The team called it 2-4 weeks when it announced the injury on October 22, and it's the first time in his NHL career he's missed games because of an injury. He took part in the morning skate, so he's getting closer. He just isn't ready for Pittsburgh.
The forward group gets back a piece it has used before. Montreal recalled Owen Beck from Laval on October 22, the same day the Suzuki news came out, and he's back in the lineup tonight.
There was good news in net. Samuel Montembeault, who hasn't played this season after hurting his lower body in practice on October 7, moved to day-to-day and took part in the morning skate. The team also gave an update on Demidov, who is still in a walking boot.
Checked with Habs, who say Demidov is still “on his timeline.” Was projected to miss a maximum of four weeks, though these things are never necessarily exact. Four weeks would be Tuesday, and the player is still in a walking boot. But that doesn’t mean he can’t shed it and play soon. We’ll see…
That's the strange part of the Canadiens' season. Every week someone else ends up in the trainer's room, and they keep winning anyway. They go for a 5th straight win tonight vs. the Penguins at 7 p.m. ET without their captain or their top-minute defenseman. To watch next: whether Suzuki gets in a full practice this week, whether Demidov is out of the boot by Tuesday, and who takes Matheson's minutes until he's back in mid-November.
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