It was time for a long awaited debut in a Montreal Canadiens jersey for Michael Frolik, as #67 took a spot on the fourth line, flanking Jake Evans. Frolik’s debut was necessitated by Montreal missing Joel Armia and Tyler Toffoli due to COVID-19 and injury, respectively.
Seemingly, it was also a long-awaited game for Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who was back on the ice after being considered a close contact for Armia a little over a week ago. Kotkaniemi needed exactly 18 seconds to score the opening goal of the night, taking advantage of the Edmonton Oilers’ fourth line ending up a little too high in the Montreal zone after the opening faceoff.