The Canadiens Need to FInd A Solution
I suspect that part of why the Canadiens are so injured does have to do with where they are in the standings. I don’t think it’s outlandish to assume more players would be playing through an injury if the Canadiens were still in contention for a playoff spot. Even then, the severity of many of these injuries is concerning, and the fact that so many young players are also getting hurt is not great either.
Several of the Habs’ young core have missed time this season due to injuries, with Juraj Slafkovsky, Cole Caufield, and Arber Xhekaj all out for the remainder of the season. The Canadiens need to ensure this won’t continue into next year. It’s one thing if aging vets like Brendan Gallagher and Sean Monahan miss time. They have lengthy injury histories. It’s, unfortunately, something that was always a possibility for them heading into this season. You don’t want your rookies heading down a similar path.
Kent Hughes basically rules out sending Juraj Slafkovsky to World Championships once he's healthy. Said they'll be risk averse with decisions like this and putting Guhle in AHL playoffs because of all the injuries this season.
— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) March 3, 2023
The Canadiens may need to make changes to the medical staff. They may need to upgrade their facilities to ensure the players can be as prepared as possible on any night. They may need to do several things. And they need to do it pronto because they cannot afford their youth to spend more time in the press box than they do on the ice. It’s not good for development, and it’s not good for success. Nobody in the NHL has suffered more injuries than the Canadiens over the last two years. The bottom line is that has to change.
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