The Montreal Canadiens announced forward Tomas Plekanec will be absent from Saturday’s game against the Ottawa Senators due to a lower back injury. Head coach Claude Julien said he is expected to be out for a few weeks and will be placed on injured reserve.
Medical update: Tomas Plekanec (lower back injury) will not make the trip to Ottawa. David Schlemko (knee) and Shea Weber (knee) will also remain in Montreal to continue their rehab program.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 19, 2018
Claude Julien says that Tomas Plekanec could be out several weeks.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 19, 2018
Tomas Plekanec injured
Montreal made the announcement today that Plekanec will not travel with the team to Ottawa for Saturday’s matchup. He will stay behind along with David Schlemko and captain Shea Weber who are both rehabbing knee injuries.
Plekanec recently celebrated hitting the 1,000 game mark in his NHL career, where he bagged his first goal of this season in a contest against the Detroit Red Wings. The Habs honoured him with a ceremony on Wednesday before a game against the St. Louis Blues. Plekanec has played three games this season so far.
Throughout his NHL career, the veteran has played 1,001 games, scoring 233 goals and earning 375 assists for a total of 608 points. Plekanec has been a dependable player for the Canadiens during his time with them. It was briefly interrupted after he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in February of 2018, where he helped the team in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Ultimately he returned to the Canadiens and signed a one year deal in July. This season will be his 15th with Montreal.
What this means for the future
After Montreal moves Plekanec to IR, they will use his roster spot to activate winger Nicolas Deslauriers. Deslauriers hasn’t played a game yet this season due to a facial fracture he sustained during pre-season action last month. Head coach Claude Julien said Deslauriers has been cleared by the teams’ doctors, but he has not made a decision on whether he will be in the lineup against the Senators. Last season, he posted ten goals and four assists for 14 points in the 58 games he played with the Canadiens.
Expect to see Matthew Peca shift back to centre from wing, to fill Plekanec’s spot in the lineup.
Main Photo: MONTREAL, QC – JANUARY 18: Tomas Plekanec #14 of the Montreal Canadiens skates during the NHL game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre on January 18, 2017 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-1. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
