On Tuesday, the Montreal Canadiens resumed practice at the CN Sports Complex in Brossard, but not all players were present and accounted for. Of course, the team’s four Olympians, Nick Suzuki, Juraj Slafkovsky, Oliver Kapanen, and Alexandre Texier, were absent, but there was another player missing: Patrik Laine.
Shortly after practice began, the Canadiens reported that the player was dealing with a lower-body injury that would be evaluated daily. That raised more than a few eyebrows for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because the big Finn took part in an impromptu practice with his teammates the day before and looked just fine, and secondly, because the injury which forced him to miss months of action and from which he hadn’t been cleared before the Olympics was not a lower-body injury, but a core muscle one.
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When the Canadiens’ communications department was asked whether Laine was injured during yesterday’s training, they said they did not know. The sniper has been talked about at length recently as trade rumours swirl around, and finding a place for him in the lineup if and when he is cleared to play will be a challenging endeavour for Martin St-Louis. There’s a trade freeze in the NHL right now, but it expires on February 22 at 11:59 PM ET. Some are wondering whether his absence isn’t just a sign that a trade is in place, which will be officialised when the calendar turns to February 23. It looks like we’re in for a bit of a waiting game.
Meanwhile, Alex Newhook joined his teammates at practice for the first time in three months after fracturing his ankle. Although he wore a non-contact jersey, it indicates he has made significant progress in his recovery. When he is ready to return, it will be interesting to see what kind of impact he will have on the Canadiens’ lineup. Could he go back to the second line with Slafkovsky going back to the first line after his great performance at the Olympics? Where does Kirby Dach land if that’s the case? And Texier? Who comes out of the lineup? Joe Veleno? Brendan Gallagher?
While there are still eight days left until the Canadiens play their next game against the New York Islanders, it doesn’t look like we’ll be short of discussion topics.
Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.
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