Losing Carrier Could Have Big Repercussions For Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are already without one regular defenseman in Kaiden Guhle, but on Saturday night, against the Pittsburgh Penguins, they might have lost right-shot blueliner Alexandre Carrier. Early in the second frame, the diminutive defenseman fell awkwardly into the boards, back and neck first, after battling with Egor Chinakhov. The defenseman tried to keep playing, but he eventually left the game.

The Canadiens have a day off on Sunday, so we likely won’t have an update on Carrier, but if he misses time, Adam Engstrom should integrate into the lineup. While the Swede isn’t a right-shot defenseman, he played on his off-side last season in the AHL and made the team out of camp, so it wouldn’t make sense to recall David Reinbacher because he’s a righty and keep Engstrom as a healthy scratch.

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That doesn't mean the Austrian blueliner won’t be called up; the Canadiens do need an extra defenseman. However, since they are entering a four-game homestand and Laval is so close to Montreal, they may not need to call anyone up yet. However, the Laval Rocket’s next game is on Saturday, October 10, meaning Reinbacher could conceivably join the Canadiens in practice this week without missing a game in the AHL.

The Canadiens’ defense corps also didn’t look great on Saturday. Mike Matheson had an awful game; Arber Xhekaj made a soft backhand pass in the neutral zone that directly led to one of the Pens’ goals; Jayden Struble’s coverage was awful, which led to another goal that was mercifully taken away by a coach's challenge for offside.

That said, Matheson plays too big a role to be scratched, and St-Louis wouldn’t even consider it. Lane Hutson and Noah Dobson are just as solid in the chairs. The question then becomes: did either Xhekaj or Struble play badly enough to deserve to be scratched in the home opener? I don’t believe so.

If Carrier cannot play, it stands to reason that Engstrom would be dressed, having watched the last two games from the press gallery. If Reinbacher is called up, he’ll have to wait his turn.

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