Jake Evans Could Be Out Long-Term

If Evans ends up needing surgery or is out of action long-term to just recover his foot, he will be the 3rd centre on the Habs to miss significant time with an injury this season. For a team that is already thin on centre depth behind captain Nick Suzuki, this could be a huge blow, but it also explains why Evans has been struggling a lot lately in his usual defensive situations. With that being said, the Canadiens may be better off without Evans in the lineup until his foot recovers, as it is really affecting his play.

Evans is among the worst players at plus-minus this season with a -16 differential through the first 29 games this year. Not to mention, the penalty kill, where he is among the most utilized forwards on the team, has been struggling a lot this year. It’s clear that his play is suffering as a result of the Habs losing Joel Armia, but at the same time, had he been healthy, it’s very likely that he would be playing much better as well.

According to Gelinas, Evans has been dealing with his foot injury, since November 20th’s game against the Washington Capitals game. It seems like the Habs thought he could play through it but maybe it’s more serious than they originally thought and Evans is looking to find out what needs to be done to get his foot and game back on track.

This isn’t the first time the Habs would have seen a setback with a player’s healing this season either, as Kaiden Guhle has ended up needing to miss 8 weeks longer than expected after he needed surgery to repair his injury. If things like this continue, the Canadiens may need to take another look at the competency of their medical staff. Unless it was Evans that tried hiding the injury but just couldn’t do it anymore. Although, that wouldn’t make much sense for needing a 2nd opinion on his injury.

The return of Owen Beck, who plays a very similar game to Evans, softens the blow of his injury if it lasts long-term. At the end of the day, the guy on the Habs roster that can be replaced the easiest by anyone from Laval is Evans, with Beck.

Beck may not be as experienced as Evans, but he has the ability to be a defensive stalwart that wins faceoffs if put in the right situation. Given that he will be able to replace Evans for at least Thursday’s game, it is a great opportunity for Beck to show whether or not he’s officially ready to play in the NHL. Of all his previous call-ups, this is probably the one where he has the opportunity to grab a role in the NHL.

If Beck does well and Evans comes back soon, there is a world where both can coexist on a defensive line together. Hopefully, Evans is ok, but even if the Canadiens are without his services for a while, they have a player with a similar skill set that can do most of what he can accomplish minus the experience that he brings.

How do you feel about the possibility that Beck could replace Evans long-term if the injury turns out to be bad?