5 Key Montreal Canadiens questions for the remainder of the season
By Omar L
The Injured
The Montreal Canadiens have been without three of their better players for a while now in Jonathan Drouin, Paul Byron and Brendan Gallagher.
Drouin is expected to make his return sometime after the All-Star Break while Byron was skating recently. Gallagher won’t have a structured timeline given the nature of his injury and what rushing him back early did to his recovery.
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On the bright side, having them on the sidelines gave the Habs the opportunity to see what Ryan Poehling can do in a long-term NHL role in the top-nine and Kovalchuk wouldn’t be a Canadien without roles to fill on the roster.
It’s not as if the Habs are in a battle at the moment. If they come out hot out of the break and rack some wins together, then perhaps having Drouin back pushes that initiative further. That could also energize Gallagher to come back and strengthen the forward corps. However, if nothing changes, the Habs should give them all the time they need, even if it lasts for the remainder of the season.
Speaking of injuries, remember Joël Teasdale? There was a good chance he could’ve seen some games in the NHL but wound up hurting his knee. The recovery time was seven months, which may have him ready for March.
Teasdale will likely start out with the Laval Rocket once he’s ready, but why not give the prospect a taste of the NHL as well.