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After a deserved day off yesterday, the Canadiens were back on the ice in Brossard this morning to practice ahead of their clash with the Devils tomorrow night. Both Joel Armia and Jonathan Drouin were missing as they were benefiting from a treatment day and Mike Matheson was still wearing a no contact jersey, although according to Raphael Doucet, he did manhandle Arber Xhekaj during a 3 on 2 drill, a clear sign that he’s getting nearer to game shape.
Juraj Slafkovsky spoke to the media for the first time following his 2-game suspension for boarding Matt Luff and told them that he will learn from the experience. Like any player, when he’s out there on the ice, he tries to finish every check on every shift, but the result of that hit was unfortunate. As he told the Department of player safety during his hearing, at least he wasn’t going at full speed at the moment of impact but given the players’ difference in size (Slafkovsky is 50 pounds heavier) Luff was still projected in the boards. The young Slovak did reach out by text to Luff to make sure he was alright. The timing of the incident was also unfortunate for Slafkovsky’s family as they were in town to see him play this weekend, but he added: “At least my mother could stay a bit longer, I hope I’ll be in tomorrow”.
Off the ice, the Canadiens announced that Jake Allen was the winner of the Jean Béliveau trophy for the 2021-2022 season. The award is given every year to the player who’s the most involved in his community and who is dedicated to reducing barriers to participation in sports. The trophy comes with a $25,000 donation to a charity of the player’s choice and Allen asked for it to be made to the Fondation Jasmin Roy Sophie Desmarais which aims to prevent and reduce bullying, discrimination, and violence in schools.
Tomorrow, the Canadiens will be taking on the red-hot New Jersey Devils who have won their last 9 games. The Habs will therefore be putting their own winning streak on the line in a game that promises to be a challenge. In 15 games so far, the Devils are one of the highest scoring teams having put up 55 goals on the board while only allowing 38 for a +17 differential (the 4th best in the league).
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