Jeff Petry a Game-Time Decision For Canadiens vs. Jets

After a strange injury in which defenseman Jeff Petry seemed to catch his hand in the camera hole of the glass during Game 3, Montreal Canadiens head coach Dominque Ducharme says the defenseman will be a game-time decision Monday night. Petry will take the pre-game warmup, and if he can’t go, Ducharme will make a call between putting Alexander Romanov or Xavier Ouellet in the lineup.

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Petry out of the game with an upper-body injury after getting his finger caught in a camera hole pic.twitter.com/iUoFvO5LEa

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) June 7, 2021

That decision could come down to which defenseman is better suited to help on special teams or where the best duos will come from with Petry out of the lineup. While most fans seem to be squarely in favor of playing Romanov, some going as far as to suggest they won’t understand it if Ducharme goes any other way, something to consider is that the Canadiens have shown a preference to play Romanov as a left-side defenseman. Ouellet has played plenty on the right side and Petry is a righty.

The Canadiens are calling it an upper body injury and they may elect to play it safe up 3-0 in their series with the Jets.

Petry Is a Workhorse and Leader for the Canadiens

Petry has been a difference-maker for the Canadiens this season. He had 42 points in 55 games during the regular season and has added another three points in 10 games during the postseason. More than that, he regularly logs big minutes, often playing 24 minutes or more per night. If he’s out any length of time, that will be a massive blow for the team, especially considering how big a step up they’ll be taking in opposition should they eliminate the Jets.

Petry is also a leader on this team and has the right mentality to win in the postseason. When asked for his opinion on the Mark Scheifele hit on Jake Evans, Petry said, “We know what we need to do to make them pay. It’s not going out there and trying to make that same hit on him. It’s about playing the right way and remain focused on our goal — and that’s to win the series.” That leadership will certainly be missing if Ouellet or Romanov are taking his place.

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