The Canadiens won't have power play specialist forward Patrik Laine in the lineup tonight as they hope to keep their year alive in a must-win Game 5 vs. Washington.
The Montreal Canadiens are facing elimination from the Stanley Cup Playoffs; if they lose Game 5 tonight against the Washington Capitals, their year will officially be over.
They're already playing without goaltender Samuel Montembeault, who was hurt in Game 3 of the series, which was so far Montreal's only win; rookie Jakub Dobes will get his 2nd straight start in the crease.
However, they're going to continue being shorthanded up front as well. Head coach Martin St. Louis announced that power play specialist Patrik Laine will continue to be unavailable.
Laine has only played in the opening pair of games in the series before missing the next 2 thanks to an upper-body injury; he was also notably benched in the 3rd period of Game 2 by St. Louis.
In addition to Montembeault and Laine, the Canadiens could also be without defenseman Alexandre Carrier after he was blasted by Washington's Tom Wilson in Game 4; he's been designated as a game time decision.
Despite Brendan Gallagher, Josh Anderson, and David Savard all taking maintenance days from practice, they're expected to play in Game 5.
Even if they drop tonight's Game 5, the Canadiens can build on this year of having made the playoffs for the 1st time since 2021 thanks to the emergence of young captain Nick Suzuki, the clutch scoring of Cole Caufield, and the dynamic mobility of rookie defenseman Lane Hutson, one of the favourites for the Calder Trophy.
