Ben Chiarot could be out for the regular season for the Montreal Canadiens after having surgery to repair a fractured hand Monday.
The defenseman is projected to resume play in 6-8 weeks. He was injured during a fight with Vancouver Canucks forward J.T. Miller at 15:02 of the first period in a 5-1 win March 10.
Chiarot has scored five points (one goal, four assists) in 25 games this season. His average of 21:22 ice time per game is third among Canadiens skaters behind defensemen Shea Weber (23:00) and Jeff Petry (22:23). His 37 blocked shots are second on Montreal behind Weber (38).
Montreal, which visits the Winnipeg Jets (8 p.m. ET; ESPN+, TSN3, TSN2, RDS, NHL.TV) on Monday, is fourth in the seven-team Scotia North Division, two points ahead of the Calgary Flames. The top four teams will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Photo courtesy of NHL.com