- Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki is out 2-4 weeks with an upper-body injury
- His streak of 546 straight regular-season games, dating to his 2019-20 debut, is over
- Read below for how the injury happened and who steps in
Nick Suzuki is out 2-4 weeks, and the Canadiens will play without their captain for the first time in his NHL career.
Montreal announced Thursday that Suzuki has an upper-body injury. Forward Owen Beck was called up from the Laval Rocket in a corresponding move.
The team did not say what the injury is, but it appears to trace back to Tuesday night. Suzuki blocked a shot with his left hand late in regulation against San Jose, per Daily Faceoff. He stayed in the game and finished it, a 4-3 overtime loss to the Sharks that Macklin Celebrini ended in overtime.
The injury ends one of the more impressive runs in the league. Suzuki had played all 546 regular-season games since his 2019-20 rookie year, plus all 56 playoff games.
Montreal can’t afford to lose him for long. Suzuki leads the Canadiens with 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in nine games. Last season he put up a career-high 101 points, won the Selke Trophy, and added 16 points in 19 playoff games as Montreal reached the Eastern Conference Final.
The center depth behind him gets tested right away. Alex Newhook, Phillip Danault and Jake Evans are the next options down the middle, and Beck has played two games for Montreal this year without a point.
The Canadiens are 4-3-2 and open a four-game road trip Friday in Chicago. They are also in Winnipeg on Sunday for the Heritage Classic, which now comes without Suzuki.
If the injury lands on the long end of the range, he’s looking at a return in mid-November.
