yardbarker
Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki made a significant step in his recovery on Monday morning, rejoining his teammates for practice while wearing a full contact jersey and taking regular shifts. It marked the first time Suzuki had skated in a contact capacity since sustaining an upper-body injury during a 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on October 20.
During the session, Suzuki centered his usual line between Juraj Slafkovsky and Cole Caufield, signaling a possible return to game action. The Canadiens had announced on October 22 that Suzuki would be sidelined for two to four weeks, but with Thursday marking two weeks since that prognosis, a return on Tuesday against the Winnipeg Jets at the Bell Centre could come ahead of schedule.
Injury Details and Team Update
The injury occurred when Suzuki blocked a shot from Sharks defenseman Michael Kesselring late in the October 20 contest. Slafkovsky confirmed the nature of the injury after practice on October 22, stating, “Yeah, blocked a shot,” and adding, “We can’t do anything about it. We just gotta wait and fight for him. Just be ready for the games; be ready to play hard and win games when he’s not playing so when he comes back, we’re in a good spot.”
In Suzuki’s absence, the Canadiens have thrived, posting a 5-0-0 record thanks in large part to standout performances from rookie goaltender Jacob Fowler. The team also recalled Oliver Beck on October 22 to help fill the void.
Kirby Dach, who is dealing with an illness, did not participate in Monday’s practice. The full lineup from Monday’s session was as follows:
- Forwards: Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Juraj Slafkovsky; Chris Kreider – Jake Evans – Josh Anderson; Zach Bolduc – Phillip Danault – Alexandre Texier; Alex Newhook – Oliver Kapanen – Owen Beck/Florian Xhekaj
- Defense: Lane Hutson – Noah Dobson; Alexandre Carrier – Kaiden Guhle; Adam Engstrom – Arber Xhekaj
- Goalies: Jacob Fowler, Jakub Dobes
With Suzuki back in a contact jersey and the team riding a five-game winning streak, the Canadiens could soon welcome their captain back to the lineup, potentially as early as Tuesday night.
Originally reported by yardbarker.