Canadiens place Brendan Gallagher, Sami Niku in COVID protocol

The Montreal Canadiens have lost a pair of players, this time to the league’s COVID protocol. Brendan Gallagher and Sami Niku have both been placed in it and will be unavailable to the team in the immediate future.

The Canadiens have not confirmed whether or not either one has actually tested positive, but if they did and are experiencing any symptoms, they’ll be held out for a minimum of 10 days. This comes just as the team is trying to reset the narrative of their season under a new boss, following the firing of Marc Bergevin and hiring of Jeff Gorton as the new front office chief. Instead of a change, the team lost to the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night, keeping them at just six wins for the season.

Thursday evening, Montreal is set to take on the Colorado Avalanche, a team that will be fuming after giving up eight goals to the Toronto Maple Leafs. It looks like the Canadiens will be without Gallagher and Niku, not the ideal situation for the rest of the group.