Montreal Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle made a significant impact with two assists in first game back from injury.
After being sidelined the last four games with an upper body injury, Kaiden Guhle returned to the Canadiens lineup on Saturday and it did not look like he missed a beat. The 21-year-old was named the first star by TVA Sports with two assists, four shots on goal, plus-2, three blocked shots and 25:08 in ice time.
"[Guhle] looked great. I love playing with him. He skates incredibly well, got up and down the ice great. He was good in the defensive zone, and great puck decisions. Hopefully I get to play a few more games with him," Justin Barron said about his teammates return.
Barron scored his third goal in the last four games on a sequence that started in the Canadiens zone and Guhle made a pass around the Jets player that eventually led to the goal.
The 21-year-old had 12:07 of ice time through 40 minutes and played 13:01 of the final 25 minutes picking up most of the ice time with Mike Matheson's night ending after the second period with a lower body injury.
"The best way to get in the game and back in the flow of things is to play a lot and getting touches. Sometimes the game is easier that way and you get in the flow of the game and you don't even really think, you just go play," Guhle said describing his ice time.
Veteran Jake Allen was impressed with the defenseman's return saying, "He's a really good kid. That's super important here. Second off, he showed tonight after being out for a few games, he looked like a 10-year veteran. We're down [David Savard], we lose [Mike Matheson] for a bit and he steps up and fills the void like it's no big deal. He plays a lot above his years, his age, it's really impressive. He has a bright future."
The coaching staff did not see any rust of the defenseman and did not hesitate to give him the extra ice time in the final period.
"It's the way that he behaves on the ice. He's always at the right place at the right time," said Martin St. Louis. "He's an excellent skater and played an excellent game. When a player like that returns you don't have high expectations but we know what he's able to do. Sometimes when you come back it takes two to three games, but Guhle looked like he hadn't missed anything."
The Alberta native's skating ability was showcased in the tying goal when he carried the puck from his own zone to Winnipeg's zone before passing it to Joel Armia to make it 3-3.
"Sometimes [Guhle] does stuff and it's like 'I didn't know he had that' cause he's still so young. That play to me was one of those plays that young players might have felt the pressure and might not make the best play. The best players find the best plays," said St. Louis evaluating the sequence.
With David Savard out up to eight weeks and Matheson potentially missing some time at the beginning of the road trip, Guhle will be relied upon to play big minutes and in key moments.
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