The Canadiens announced Tuesday morning that rookie forward Emil Heineman was involved in a traffic accident Monday in Utah as a pedestrian and will be sidelined 3-4 weeks with an upper-body injury.
The Canadiens flew to Utah on Sunday and will play the Utah Hockey Club Tuesday (9 p.m., TSN2, RDS).
Heineman, 23, has 10-7-17 totals in 41 games this season to rank seventh among NHL rookies in scoring. He ranks third among rookies in goals with 10, trailing the Philadelphia Flyers’ Matvei Michkov and the San Jose Sharks’ Macklin Celebrini, who have 13 each. The 6-foot-2, 198-pound Heineman also led the Canadiens with 101 hits — four more than defenceman Arber Xhekaj — despite averaging only 11:09 of ice time per game.
Heineman has been part of the Canadiens’ very effective fourth line with Jake Evans and Joel Armia that has combined for 27 goals. Evans has 10 goals and Armia has seven.
“We’ve been clicking on our line and that makes it easier, for sure,” Heineman said recently. “But we’ve been trying to keep it quite simple when we get out there and use our strength. If we make it too complicated we will get stuck and lose momentum, lose confidence, stuff like that. We’re trying to keep it quite simple and go to those places that we know where we’re good and we feel comfortable.
“I think like I’m getting into the timing and learning to adapt to different situations out there,” Heineman added. “I like how I’ve been forechecking, winning pucks. It’s been a big deal for us as a line, too. I think that’s the main reason we’re creating a lot of offence. I like that part that we’re aggressive and just staying in the battles.”
Heineman wasn’t complaining about his limited ice time playing on the fourth line.
“I don’t think about it too much,” he said. “I’m trying to just be better every day, do my best and trying to make the team every day. It’s been that mindset and just not take it for granted. Just always trying to be better every day.”
The Canadiens didn’t have any players on the injury list before Heineman was hurt. Michael Pezzetta is expected to take Heineman’s spot against the Utah Hockey Club, but don’t be surprised if the Canadiens to call up another forward from the AHL’s Laval Rocket to take Heineman’s spot moving forward.
After Tuesday’s game, the Canadiens will be back in action Thursday against the Stars in Dallas before back-to-back home games at the Bell Centre on Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Sunday against the New York Rangers.