Oliver Kapanen and Florian Xhekaj are (once again) out of the lineup tonight

Félix Forget
Oliver Kapanen and Florian Xhekaj are (once again) out of the lineup tonight
Credit: Chris Tanouye/Getty Images

Tonight, the Canadiens will face the Penguins in Pittsburgh. This will be the final road game for Martin St-Louis's team, who will head home in preparation for their game next Tuesday.

But before thinking about the Hurricanes, we have to focus on the Penguins tonight.

The main question heading into tonight's game was whether Oliver Kapanen would return to the lineup. The injured Finnish forward has been back at practice over the past few days.

But clearly, he's not ready yet (or Martin St-Louis doesn't want to adjust his lineup), because the coach told the media that no changes are expected tonight.

Kapanen, Florian Xhekaj, and Adam Engström are therefore expected to be on the bench again.

And, unsurprisingly, that also means we'll see Jakub Dobes in net for the Canadiens again tonight. He played well on Tuesday night, and with such a long break between games, it makes sense to see him back in action tonight.

The Habs have confirmed that #75 will be their starter today.

After a great win against the Leafs, it's no surprise to see the Habs continue to rely on the lineup that took the ice on Tuesday. And while Kapanen isn't yet at 100%, the team has the luxury of time: it can afford to let him recover fully, given that it has other forwards capable of handling his workload.

Alex Newhook will therefore likely have another opportunity to prove he deserves to be the team's second-line center: it's up to him to seize it now.


In a Nutshell

– Hi, Gleb.

– Great read.

– Interesting.

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