Good news for all Habs fans, defenceman Alexei Emelin has been cleared to return to the line-up as early as this weekend. He could be back as early as Friday night when the Canadiens take on the Columbus Blue Jackets, but if not should be back when they take on the New York Rangers at the Bell Centre on Saturday.
The Habs are 9-8-1 so far this season without Emelin in the lineup, and his return should add a much needed physical presence, and strong defensive game to the Montreal blueline. The site of the Russian Tank in a Habs uniform will be a welcome one for Habs fans.
Emelin was injured last April during a game against Boston when he attempted to check Milan Lucic but bounced off and fell awkwardly into the boards. He left the game and the team would later confirm that he had torn knee ligaments and would require surgery.
Emelin has been working extremely hard in rehab and has made great strides in his recovery. He’s been diligent from day one working hard to get himself from walking with crutches, to moving around without them, eventually to some light skating, and now to really push himself back into shape. He was back on the ice at the end of August and by November he started practicing with the team in a non-contact jersey. Recently he’s been taking full practices and is no longer wearing the non-contact jersey.
The team originally stated that he would not be available until the end of the November or early December, but with the fast recovery he is back a few weeks earlier than originally planned. On Monday Emelin travelled to New York where his knee surgeon gave him the green light to return to the lineup.
So what can the Habs expect with Emelin back? Well I think that even though he is now cleared, the team should have patience with Emelin. It will take him time to overcome the injury and he will need to be eased into the lineup. It could take Emelin several weeks before he is back to being the player he was before he got hurt, perhaps even longer. It may take a while before he is the punishing physical presence the team is used to seeing.
The last question is who will be removed from the lineup with Emelin out. Douglas Murray may be the odd man out as he is getting the least minutes of the Habs six-man unit and was a late summer signing who was to bring the physical game that was missing with Emelin out of the lineup. However he has been stronger in his last few games as he is returning from his own pre-season injury. Another possibility is Francois Bouillion, who is not getting any younger. Bouillion and Murray are both scheduled to be free agents at the end of the summer, and this may mean that one of the two could be traded to make room for Emelin. This is the unlikeliest scenario though as the team will likely want to carry seven defencemen, even if one sits in the pressbox. A rotation could keep both Bouillion and Murray fresh down the stretch, and ready if other injuries come to the Habs going forward.
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