Habs Injury News Worse Than Expected

Originally, Guhle was expected to come back within 4 to 6 weeks from the non-contact lower-body injury he suffered against the Nashville Predators on October 16th. With that being said, he was expected to be back within the next 2 weeks and was even skating on his own in Brossard last week, giving us as fans a lot of hope that he would be coming back soon. Unfortunately, he ended up needing surgery on Thursday to repair the adductor muscle, after the Habs thought it wouldn’t be needed originally.

The Habs were already struggling defensively, with Jayden Struble having to play up in the lineup to replace Guhle alongside Lane Hutson. At first, it wasn’t so bad, but now, the pairing is really struggling, and it just seemed like it had to be used temporarily while they wait for Guhle’s return.Now, they need to find another solution because that so-called 2nd pairing is hurting the Habs, and they can’t keep running it for another 6-8 weeks.

Maybe the Canadiens look to try Adam Engstrom, or maybe try to make a trade for a veteran defenseman that can play 18-20 minutes a night and serve as a strong defensive presence to allow Hutson to play his offensive game. Struble can’t be that guy anymore.

Meanwhile, a 5’11 Alexandre Carrier, who often takes shifts with Hutson lately, is too small to be a consistent partner for Hutson, as they will struggle covering bigger forward groups. Although, for the time being, it may be the best option that they have to play on the 2nd pairing with Hutson.

As for Newhook being out for 4 months, it hurts a lot because he was playing the best hockey of his NHL career, scoring 6 goals and 12 points in 17 games. It will be hard to replace his skill and speed in the lineup until at least the beginning of March. He seemed to really build chemistry with Ivan Demidov and Oliver Kapanen. It will definitely hurt the team, but his role is still easier to replace than Guhle’s.

Unfortunately, Davidson doesn’t have a lot of speed to his game, but he makes up for it with intensity on the forecheck and backcheck that make him a good 2-way player.

Davidson also brings a great scoring ability as he leads the Laval Rocket with 9 goals in 13 games. He will be able to play a role on the 2nd power play as someone who can give Kirby Dach and Noah Dobson another passing option. Given his lack of speed, he won’t be the guy to bring the puck into the zone like Newhook, but he should still bring an offensive presence for the power play.

Davidson can also play a good role on the penalty kill as a left-handed shot who takes faceoffs. This is something that he can do to help replace the loss of Newhook, who was playing a big role on the PK.  

The truth is, Davidson may not be the best pure skill player with the Rocket, but he was one of the hardest workers and does a little of everything, which is something the Canadiens need right now. It will be interesting to see exactly what he does in the NHL with this huge chance that he is being given after replacing a guy with a long-term injury. With that being said, Davidson is likely to get a nice long look in Montreal.