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Montreal Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien confirmed that Andrei Markov will miss at least one more game, Thursday against the Minnesota Wild, and is unlikely against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday.
Michel Therrien affirme qu'Andrei Markov ne jouera pas demain soir et qu'il serait surprenant qu'il joue vendredi à Columbus. #GoHabsGo
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) December 21, 2016
Markov was injured earlier this week when the Canadiens battled the Washington Capitals, with what the team is calling a lower body injury.
Markov first missed Tuesday’s game against the Anaheim Ducks which saw his ironman streak end at 116 games for the Montreal Canadiens. Markov is having a fantastic season thus far, putting up 21 points in 31 games, putting him on pace for his most productive season since the 2008-09 season prior to the injury.
With the Canadiens riding a wave of momentum heading into the Christmas break, the team should be able to absorb the loss of Markov, and it will provide Markov with some rest prior to what will hopefully be a deep playoff run for the 38 year old. In his absence Nathan Beaulieu stepped up into a defensive pairing with Jeff Petry.