Patrik Laine practiced with his full equipment this morning.

Dose
Crédit:

With its rush of away games – across various time zones – and repeated flights, the Canadiens have not trained much over the past few days. Martin St-Louis has read the mental and physical state of his group well… and he has gained by betting on rest days rather than practice sessions on the ice.

But this break from training is now a thing of the past; the players of the CH took to the ice at the Bell CN Complex in Brossard a little earlier this morning.

In fact, I should have written “some” players took to the ice. Because not all players laced up their skates this morning.

Some forwards and the goalies skated on the ice in what seemed to be an optional practice. The return to regular training will therefore have to wait until tomorrow…

Before them, Patrik Laine was seen skating solo, but with his full equipment. He looked very good. I have the impression that he will be able to play this weekend, but they want to keep him away from the group for as long as possible to avoid contaminating his teammates (flu/gastro). Will he train with the regular group tomorrow? The CH should be able to provide us with an update on Laine’s condition in 24 hours.

David Savard, for his part, skated in sweats after his teammates. He is injured in the upper body, and all indications suggest that we will still need to be patient before seeing Papy Savy in uniform again.

The Canadiens will practice again in Brossard tomorrow before flying to Washington. On Friday, they will face Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals, and less than 24 hours later, they will be at the Bell Centre to host the Dallas Stars (who will have been in Montreal for nearly 48 hours).

Each of the team’s two goalies should see action this weekend. I expect that Jakub Dobes will be sent into the fray in Washington and Montembeault at the Bell Centre. But, well, the opposite could also make sense.

And next week, the Montreal team will play four games in six nights in three different cities. They will have to go through Utah and Dallas (Tuesday and Thursday).

In short, we are witnessing the calm before – and after – the storm with the Canadiens.

Perfect timing to bring the GM out for the mid-season review! #11h30

In brief

– The salary cap of CF Montreal is currently MANY smaller than that of 2024. We can/should therefore expect more additions before the camp opens (January 11?)… or during the camp, like Josef Martinez last year.

– Will this be the announcement of the day – around lunch – from CF Montreal?

– Ivan Demidov and the SKA are having a tough time this morning.