Montreal Canadiens Announce Juraj Slafkovsky Injured, Confirm His Replacement

The 20-year-old winger played in the Canadiens' 4-3 shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday despite appearing to have a shoulder injury during practice last week. He recorded two assists in 15:57 of ice time.

The Canadiens practiced in anticipation of their matchup with the Rangers on Tuesday. New York is 4-0-1, second in the Metropolitan Division, and has not lost in regulation this season.

Slafkovsky left before the main session, but he skated alone before the team's Tuesday morning skate. Kaiden Guhle's upper-body injury has kept him out of action. The defenseman is still being assessed every day.

Michael Pezzetta is scheduled to make his season debut against the New York Rangers tonight. He will replace Juraj Slafkovsky, and is hoping to take advantage of the ice time given.

To jump-start their top six, the Canadiens will also experiment. Oliver Kapanen, a rookie, will take Kirby Dach's place as the second-line center, and Dach will be promoted to the starting lineup. Lastly, the team confirmed on Tuesday, Samuel Montembeault will be a starter. He recorded a season-high 45 saves in the Bell Centre's thrilling 4-3 shootout victory over the Rangers the previous season.

The Canadiens will honor members of the 1970s dynasty that saw the team win four consecutive Stanley Cups with a special pregame ceremony called "Tribute to the Champions." The final Cup victory of that run, a 4-1 series victory over the Rangers in 1979, is being commemorated this year for the 45th time. Among the players from that era are Serge Savard, Larry Robinson, Bob Gainey, and Ken Dryden.

TSN2 and RDS will broadcast Montreal's seventh game of the regular season. So stay tuned for a wild game tonight.