Since trading Sean Monahan to the Winnipeg Jets for a first-round draft pick (and conditional fourth-rounder) on Friday, the Montreal Canadiens lost one of their best forwards.
While the ex-Canadiens centre played a crucial leadership role in the locker room, he was also effective in the faceoff dot, on the scoresheet, and on the power play — with 16 of the 29-year-old’s points this season coming on the man advantage.
With Monahan gone and Alex Newhook still on the injured list for the time being, the team has had to make some adjustments up the middle, recently calling up seasoned AHLer Brandon Gignac.
As a result, their power-play unit has been altered, with Tanner Pearson taking Monahan’s former spot.
According to TVA Sports reporter Anthony Martineau, the Habs practiced with the following units on Monday morning:
PP 1
Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Tanner Pearson
Mike Matheson – Juraj Slafkovsky
PP 2
 Rafael Harvey-Pinard – Brandon Gignac – Josh Anderson
Jesse Ylonen – Arber Xhekaj
PP1:
Suzuki-Caufield-Pearson (prend la place de Monahan)-Matheson-Slafkovsky
PP2: RHP-Anderson-Gignac-Ylonen-Xhekaj
— Anthony Martineau (@Antho_Martineau) February 5, 2024
Firing at a 19.9% efficiency rate, the Canadiens currently have the 19th-best power play in the NHL.
As for how the rest of their lineup looks, Martineau also shared the team’s forward combinations.
After a brief break that saw Josh Anderson get first-line minutes, it appears that Juraj Slafkovsky has rejoined Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield on Montreal’s top trio.
With Jake Evans now centring the second line, Gignac is expected to play his first NHL game in nearly five years on a line with Josh Anderson and fellow call-up Lucas Condotta.
Martineau also reported that based on how dressing 11 forwards and seven defencemen remains a possibility for Tuesday night’s road game against the Washington Capitals as Montreal looks to improve its record of 20-21-8.
Il y a présentement alternance entre 13 attaquants, mais les 1res combinaisons étaient:
Caufield-Suzuki-Slaf
Pearson-Evans-Ylonen
Condotta-Gignac-Anderson
RHP-Pezzetta (extra?)-ArmiaÇa pourrait donc ressembler à un 11-7 demain, mais JE NE PARIE PAS MA MAISON LÀ-DESSUS.
— Anthony Martineau (@Antho_Martineau) February 5, 2024
After that, the Canadiens are scheduled for back-to-back afternoon games, with a home bout against the Dallas Stars on Saturday and another against the St. Louis Blues on Sunday.
Follow Channels and Categories