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The Canadiens added another headache to their weekend. Josh Anderson was pulled from practice for a treatment day.
On Friday morning, the team announced that the 31-year-old forward would not take part in the today’s practice session in order to receive treatments. It is described as managing his health status, but as always with that wording, everyone will be watching closely to see what comes next.From a numbers standpoint, Anderson has 5 goals, 3 assists, and 8 points in 26 games this season, with a -11 differential and 20 penalty minutes. He averages just under 15 minutes per game, which still makes him an important part of Martin St-Louis’ rotation on the wing.
His situation continues to be closely monitored because he earns $5.5M per season on a long-term contract with the Canadiens. For a 31-year-old power forward in the sixth year of a seven-year deal, every absence and every slowdown quickly becomes a topic of discussion in Montreal.
“Forward Josh Anderson (therapy day) will not participate in today’s practice.”
– Montreal Canadiens
Josh Anderson forced to rest at the worst time for the Canadiens
In this context, removing a regular winger from practice, even for a single treatment day, further stretches an already battered lineup.
Anderson has played all 26 games of the season so far, and the Canadiens cannot afford to multiply the holes around Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Juraj Slafkovsky if the team wants to stay close to the front of the pack in the Atlantic.
For now, nothing officially indicates a major injury, but fans still remember situations where a simple treatment day turned into an extended absence.
With the weekend approaching and an already busy schedule, the next medical update on Josh Anderson will be listened to word for word in Montreal.
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Josh Anderson misses practice in Brossard as the Canadiens’ health concerns grow
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