Canadiens Face Rangers Amidst Injury Concerns and Promising Start
The Montreal Canadiens will face a challenging matchup against the New York Rangers on Saturday at the Bell Centre (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, CITY, SNE, MSG) while navigating a significant injury crisis. Key players Kaiden Guhle, kirby Dach, and Patrik Laine are all sidelined, throwing a wrench into the team’s early-season momentum.
The Canadiens’ infirmary swelled Saturday morning with the proclamation of the three absences. Guhle, a 23-year-old defenseman, is expected to be out for four to six weeks with a lower-body injury sustained during Thursday’s game against the Nashville Predators. “Their absence will not be long term. It’s part of life,” a senior team official stated, emphasizing the need to adapt and continue competing. Guhle has recorded two points (one goal, one assist) in five games this season and has struggled with consistent availability throughout his young career, previously missing two months last season due to a quadriceps laceration.
Dach and Laine are both dealing with lower-body injuries, and their conditions will be evaluated on a daily basis. Laine has one assist in five games, while dach has registered two points (one goal, one assist) so far this season.
To bolster the roster, the Canadiens recalled forward Owen Beck from the Laval Rocket of the american Hockey League (AHL). Beck will be in the lineup alongside Joe Veleno, who is set to play his first game in a canadiens uniform, forming a trio with Zachary Bolduc. Veleno expressed his excitement, stating, “I texted (my family members) when I found out I was playing… Everyone
The New York Rangers, meanwhile, are dealing with their own injury concerns, notably with forward Vincent Trocheck’s upper-body injury. Their power play ranks 27th in the NHL with an 11.8% success rate.
Though, the Rangers excel defensively, leading the NHL in goals allowed per game (1.50) and boasting the sixth-best penalty kill (91.7%). Despite their offensive woes,they have lost their last three games by a margin of two goals or less,indicating close contests.
Forward Alexis Lafrenière acknowledged the challenge,stating,”The Canadiens,it’s a good team. They made some good acquisitions.they are young, they are fast, so we will have to be good defensively and try to build on our game.”
Planned Ranger Lineup:
Conor Sheary — JT Miller — Alexis Lafrenière
Artemi Panarin — mika Zibanejad — Will Cuylle
Juuso Parssinen — Noah Laba — Taylor Raddysh
Adam Edstrom — Sam Carrick — Matt Rempe
Vladislav Gavrikov — adam fox
Matthew Robertson — Will Borgen
Urho Vaakanainen — braden Schneider
Jonathan Quick
Igor Shesterkin
Entrenched: Scott Morrow,Jonny Brodzinski
Wounded: Vincent Trocheck (upper body),Carson Soucy (upper body)
Planned Canadiens Lineup:
Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Juraj Slafkovsky
Oliver Kapanen — Alex Newhook — Ivan Demidov
josh Anderson — Jake Evans — Brendan gallagher
Zachary Bolduc — Joe Veleno — owen Beck
Mike Matheson — Noah Dobson
Jayden Struble — Lane Hutson
Arber Xhekaj — Alexandre Carrier
Samuel Montembeault
Jakub Dobes
Removed: None
Wounded: Kaiden Guhle (lower body),Kirby Dach (lower body),Patrik Laine (lower body)
Despite the injury setbacks,the Canadiens are poised to deliver a competitive performance at the Bell Center,capitalizing on their strong home record and youthful energy against a Rangers team searching for offensive consistency.
