Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Won't return to Tuesday's game
Rotowire
Pezzetta (upper body) won't finish Tuesday's game versus the Red Wings.
Pezzetta will end the campaign with 12 points in 61 appearances. He rarely saw anything more than fourth-line minutes with the Canadiens this season. Pezzetta is under contract for 2024-25, so he should be in contention to once again fill a bottom-six spot.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Contributes to win
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Pezzetta had an assist, two blocked shots and four hits in Sunday's 5-1 win over Seattle.
Pezzetta logged his first point since Feb. 6, a stretch that includes several healthy scratches. He had a classic Pezzetta-like night. On his first shift, he hit Ryker Evans, who didn't return due to a lower-body injury, then Pezzetta's dogged forechecking in the offensive zone led to the first of two Alex Newhook goals. Pezzetta leads Montreal with 205 hits over 49 games, and he's added 11 points this season.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Chases goalie in win
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Pezzetta scored a goal on one shot and added two hits over 10:08 of ice time in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Capitals.
Following an offensive-zone faceoff, Rafael Harvey-Pinard picked up the loose puck in the corner and fed Pezzetta, who went backhand-forehand for his third goal of the season. The tally was Montreal's third in the first 13 minutes of the game and chased old friend Charlie Lindgren, who spent five seasons with the Canadiens between 2015-19. Pezzetta has 10 points through 39 games and is threatening the career-best 15 points he had over 63 contests last season.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Ends goal drought
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Pezzetta scored a goal on one shot in Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Senators. He also had one block, three hits and five penalty minutes over 8:47 of ice time.
Pezzetta trailed on a rush and buried a loose puck past Joonas Korpisalo for the final tally of the game. It was Pezzetta's second goal of the season and ended a 24-game run without hitting the back of the net. By now, fantasy managers probably realize the fourth-line forward does not help as a scorer, but Pezzetta is tied for 10th in the NHL with 115 hits and tops the league with 26.29 hits per 60 minutes.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: On scoring burst
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Pezzetta logged an assist and two hits over 9:01 of ice time in Wednesday's 3-2 shootout loss to Philadelphia.
Pezzetta was still on the ice during a line change, and he and Juraj Slafkovsky combined to help on David Savard's goal. It was the third assist in the last four games and the fourth in the last seven for Pezzetta. He has one goal, seven assists, 29 shots, 105 hits, 14 blocks and 28 PIM through 29 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Garners assist, eight hits in win
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Pezzetta had an assist and eight hits over 8:25 of ice time in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Rangers.
Pezzetta won a puck battle on the side wall, which led to Mitchell Stephens feeding Joel Armia for Montreal's third goal. The hard-working Pezzetta has three assists and 27 hits over the last six games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Helps in win
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Pezzetta had an assist, two shots on net, two blocked shots and eight hits over 10:46 of ice time in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Stars.
Pezzetta made a nifty pass off the boards back to Johnny Kovacevic, whose slapshot rebounded to Kaiden Guhle for Montreal's second goal. It was the second helper in four games for Pezzetta, who's known more for his grit than enabling scoring chances. The eight hits raised his total to a team-high 91 over 26 games (7:46 TOI per game).
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Nabs assist the hard way
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Pezzetta had an assist, two shots on net, one blocked shot and two hits over 6:48 of ice time in Thursday's 5-3 loss to the Hurricanes.
Pezzetta was net front, fighting for position, when Jayden Struble's shot from the point bounced off Pezzeta's body onto the stick of Mitchell Stephens to produce Montreal's first goal. Pezzetta had been a healthy scratch for the previous two games. He has one goal, four assists, 24 shots on net, 11 blocked shots and 78 hits over 23 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Helps in loss
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Pezzetta had an assist, one blocked shot and two hits over 6:12 of ice time in Wednesday's 4-3 shootout loss to Pittsburgh.
Pezzetta and his fourth-line mates had a strong start -- they were on the ice for Montreal's first two goals during the first period. That unit dogged the Penguins into a turnover that produced David Savard's unassisted marker, then Pezzetta and Jesse Ylonen assisted on Jayden Struble's tally. Pezzetta has four points (one goal, three assists) and 70 hits over 20 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Slides nifty assist
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Pezzetta had an assist, two blocked shots and one hit over 7:17 of ice time in Thursday's 6-5 loss to the Golden Knights.
Montreal's fourth line provided a pair of goals Thursday, both by Jesse Ylonen. On the second of those goals, Pezzetta retrieved a puck behind the net then slung a nifty backhand pass to Ylonen for the Canadiens' fourth goal. Known more for his grit than ability to generate scoring chances, it was the type of play rarely seen from Pezzetta. He has three points over 13 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Records first goal
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Pezzetta scored a goal on one shot and delivered six hits over 7:09 of ice time in Tuesday's 5-3 loss to the Lightning.
Pezzetta banged home a loose puck in front of the fallen Matt Tomkins, closing the gap to 4-2 just 34 seconds after Nick Suzuki scored the Canadiens' first goal. Pezzetta, a fourth-line winger, typically provides a spark in other ways -- note the team-high six hits -- as this was just his second point and ninth shot on goal through nine games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Logs assist in loss
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Pezzetta recorded an assist, one shot on goal, one blocked shot and two hits over 6:17 of ice time in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to New Jersey.
Pezzetta's shot off the rush was saved, but the rebound went directly to Justin Barron, who buried his second goal in as many games. It was a mostly quiet game for Pezzetta, whose typical fantasy contributions come in the hits and PIM categories. He's been active in four straight contests following Kirby Dach's season-ending knee injury.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Enters lineup, does Pezzetta things
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Pezzetta had a shot on goal, six hits and two fights over 5:46 of ice time in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to Minnesota.
Pezzetta was on the active roster for the first time this season, as Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis adjusted following the loss of Kirby Dach to a season-ending knee injury. When active, Pezzetta typically plays an agitator role on the fourth line and that didn't change Tuesday. In 63 games last season, the forward amassed 239 hits and 77 PIM.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Inks two-year extension
Rotowire
Pezzetta signed a two-year, $1.625 million extension with the Canadiens on Friday, Sportsnet reports.
Pezzetta drew into 63 games with Montreal in 2022-23, picking up seven goals and 15 points while averaging 9:19 of ice time. The 25-year-old forward should continue to post similar numbers while skating in a bottom-six role over the next two campaigns.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Two points in loss
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Pezzetta had a goal and an assist in a 5-4 loss to Boston on Thursday.
The points snapped a 12-game drought. Pezzetta is an energy guy, so points aren't a regular occurrence. He finished the season with seven goals and 15 points in 63 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Pops shootout winner
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Pezzetta scored the game-winning shootout goal in Monday's 4-3 win over the Sabres.
Pezzetta's not the top pick on anyone's shootout list, but he slipped the puck past Eric Comrie in the sixth round to give Montreal the extra point. The marker was also notable for his throwback celebration to Tiger Williams. Pezzetta technically extended his scoring drought to five contests, given that shootout goals don't count towards a player's point total.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Works hard for goal
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Pezzetta scored a goal on three shots in Thursday's 9-5 loss to the Panthers. He added six hits and one blocked shot to his line over 10:36 of ice time.
It was goal befitting Pezzetta's style. He laid out on the ice to keep the puck in Florida's end, then was back on his skates when Anthony Richard's shot was deflected, and he managed to redirect with the shaft of his stick. The goal was his sixth, establishing a new career high for the fourth-line forward who has 13 points over 50 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Two-pointer in loss
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Pezzetta scored a goal on two shots and assisted on another in Tuesday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Hurricanes. He also had four hits over 8:28 of ice time.
It was a big night for Montreal's fourth line, which scored two of the team's three goals. Pezzetta picked up an assist on a tally by Alex Belzile, who was in the right spot after a rebound. Pezzetta later crashed the net and finished a nice feed from Chris Tierney. The two-point night was the third of the season for Pezzetta, who has a career-high 12 points through 45 games.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Manages helper Sunday
Rotowire
Pezzetta posted an assist, four hits and two PIM in Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Golden Knights.
Pezzetta has two helpers over his last eight games, but he hasn't scored a goal in that span. The 24-year-old has been a fixture in the Canadiens' lineup on the fourth line, a role that doesn't lend itself to much fantasy relevance. He's collected 10 points, 157 hits, 48 PIM, 47 shots on net and a minus-1 rating through 44 contests overall.
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Canadiens' Michael Pezzetta: Big effort for assist
Rotowire
Pezzetta recorded an assist, one shot on goal, six hits and one blocked shot over 13:56 of ice time in Friday's 5-2 win over Philadelphia.
Pezzetta made the hustle play of the night. He beat Flyer defenders to negate a potential icing then, while falling down behind the net, backhanded a feed to Chris Tierney for a late first-period goal. The points are rare for the fourth-line forward but not the hits. Pezzetta, who's recorded 73 hits over the last 15 games, is second on the club with 143 thumps while averaging 9:00 TOI over 39 contests. On a hits-per-game basis, Pezzetta ranks sixth in the NHL with 3.66.
