According to Luc Gélinas, the Habs played to avoid injury last night

And it’s understandable that in a no-stakes game against a team with a line-up closer to the AHL than the NHL, the players aren’t going to give their all on the ice. Especially since the memory of last year’s warm-up game against these same Leafs is still fresh, when Patrik Laine and David Reinbacher both suffered serious knee injuries.

Unfortunately, even though the Habs tried to play it safe in last night’s game, they lost the services of Reinbacher, who fractured his hand and will miss a month, and Noah Dobson, who injured his groin and is day-to-day.

Add Kaiden Guhle, who also injured his groin during morning practice and should also be back in action soon, and it’s a worrying situation for the Canadiens. The problem is that when you play to avoid injury, you change the way you play. Players start to think too much, they become stiffer, they put themselves in vulnerable situations and, in the end, get hurt. Not to mention that an athlete who doesn’t want to get hurt risks losing his second lead and is often late to the game. We saw this last night with several Canadiens veterans, but also with Kirby Dach last year.

In short, let’s hope our B-club looks better tomorrow night in Toronto against the Leafs’ best players

’En

Ahead

– A return too soon?

– He’ll be a free agent at the end of next season.

– Lukes adds two runs for the Jays.

– Two-point home run for Judge.