Armia will be the odd man out and head to the press box as a healthy scratch as Anthony Richard rejoins the Canadiens' lineup Tuesday vs. Nashville. The 29-year-old has struggled to make an impact at all this season, with three assists, 45 SOG, 10 PIMs and a -7 plus/minus through 26 games.
Armia is dealing with an upper-body injury and will not be available for Tuesday's game vs. New Jersey. Juraj Slafkovský has served his two-game suspension and will draw back into the Canadiens lineup to replace Armia.
The Canadiens announced on Sunday that Armia will miss one-to-two weeks, so moving him to IR means he'll for sure miss seven days. Juraj Slafkovsky will open the season with the Canadiens, which could change once Armia is back and in need of a roster spot.
Missing one to two weeks would mean that Armia would miss at least three games. The injury opens the door for No.1 overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky to start the season with the Canadiens.
Armia has travelled back to Finland to attend to some personal reasons, so he will not play Tuesday vs. the Wild. It's unclear when Armia will be back with the team but Mathieu Perreault will replace him in Tuesday's game.
Armia missed seven games while in COVID-19 protocol but was on the ice for Monday's practice and is expected to play Tuesday vs. the Devils. Armia skated in the bottom-6 in Monday's session and has not scored a goal in 16 games.
Armia and Cole Caufield were added to the COVID-19 protocol list on Tuesday, so look for Michael Pezzetta and someone from the taxi squad to enter the lineup in Dallas.
Armia missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury but is expected to replace Jake Evans (undisclosed) in the lineup on Saturday. Armia has one goal and four assists in 26 games this season.
Armia has become a versatile part of the Canadiens' middle-6 in recent years and signs a nice $3.35M AAV extension the day before free agency. Armia's offence fell off a bit in 2021 but has averaged 19 goals and 16 assists (35 points) per 82-games in his three years in Montreal.
Armia has been sidelined by COVID-19 since mArch 20th but will play Wednesday vs. the Flames. Armia skated in the top-6 with Nick Suzuki and Tyler Toffoli in the morning skate, so he'll have a prime opportunity to put up some points vs. Calgary.
Armia was on the ice for the Canadiens morning skate and left with the rest of the regulars. which is a good sign that he'll be available tonight vs. the Maple Leafs. The Canadiens would not commit to him playing, so consider him a game-time decision. The way Montreal has been rolling, it's difficult to project who he would replace.
Armia suffered a concussion on a hit from Tyler Myers on Thursday and missed Friday's practice. With Armia dealing with a concussion, he's already been ruled out of Saturday's rematch in Vancouver. Corey Perry skated in his spot in Friday's practice.
