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Canadiens starting defenseman out 2-4 weeks with upper-body injury
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- Canadiens starting defenseman out 2-4 weeks with upper-body injury
Canadiens starting defenseman out 2-4 weeks with upper-body injury appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday announced that defenseman Alexandre Carrier will miss two to four weeks with an upper-body injury. Carrier, who joined Montreal in a midseason trade from the Nashville Predators last season, has played in all 77 games during the 2025-26 season, putting up a 7-15–22 scoring line with a +2 rating.
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The 29-year-old spent 19:05 on the ice in his last game on Sunday, a 3-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes , skating 19 shifts and finishing with a +1 rating. There was no visible indication of injury during the game, and the team has not disclosed the cause. Given that the third-seeded Canadiens (43-21-10) in the Atlantic Division will play the Philadelphia Flyers for their final regular-season game on April 14, Carrier's regular season is likely over. He may also miss the opening games of Montreal's first-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series.
This season, Carrier has been primarily a second- or third-pairing right-shot defenseman, often playing alongside Kaiden Guhle . He has scored a career-high seven goals and supplied 15 assists, slightly below his career-best 30-point output with Nashville in 2021-22. Carrier has also averaged 3+ minutes per game on the penalty kill, forming half of the Canadiens' top shorthanded unit with Mike Matheson . However, the unit has allowed 10.6 goals per 60 minutes while he is on the ice.
Carrier's absence leaves Noah Dobson as Montreal's only healthy right-shot defenseman. The Canadiens recalled left-shot defenseman Adam Engstrom from the AHL's Laval Rocket on Monday. With forwards Josh Anderson , Kirby Dach , and Alexandre Texier also unavailable, Arber Xhekaj has filled in as a winger.
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