Mike Matheson out of Canadiens lineup tonight, Owen Beck draws in

Mike Matheson won't dress for the Canadiens tonight against Buffalo, and his status will be reassessed day to day.

That's a blue line problem nobody in Montreal wanted heading into a back-to-back, with the Capitals waiting tomorrow night in Washington.

The timing stings. The Canadiens sit at 2-2-1 and have been outscored 19-15 through five games.

Matheson hasn't exactly been lighting it up. One assist and a -3 rating over those five games is thin return on a $6,000,000 cap hit.

But he's a 32-year-old veteran on a young back end. Losing him before a back-to-back is like losing your spare tire right before a long highway drive.

You don't notice it's gone until something goes wrong. And this group has already had plenty go wrong in its own end.

The other lineup news cuts the opposite way. Owen Beck draws in and will play his first game with the Canadiens this season.

Jacob Fowler gets a third straight start as Dobes waits for Washington

Martin St-Louis needed a fresh body up front anyway. Ivan Demidov is on injured reserve and isn't expected back until at least Oct. 31.

In the crease, the head coach is riding the kid. Jacob Fowler gets his third consecutive start tonight, while Jakub Dobes takes the Capitals tomorrow.

The numbers back the split. The 21-year-old owns a .938 save percentage and already has a shutout on his record.

Dobes sits at .856. Until Samuel Montembeault comes off injured reserve, no earlier than Oct. 20, Fowler should get the net every single night the schedule allows.

"Mike Matheson will be out tonight, and his condition will be reevaluated on a day-to-day basis.

Owen Beck will make his season debut with the Canadiens tonight!

Jacob Fowler will make his third consecutive start in goal, while Jakub Dobes will face the Capitals tomorrow in Washington."

The Sabres arrive on the second half of their own back-to-back after beating Florida 5-3 yesterday afternoon.

They're also without Rasmus Dahlin. He's listed day-to-day with an upper-body injury and isn't expected back until at least Oct. 15.

Tage Thompson is the name to circle. He has four goals and seven points in six games, and a thinner Montreal blue line now has to find answers for him.

Lane Hutson carries more weight tonight. He leads the Canadiens defense with four assists and will have to drive the transition game almost by himself.

Is Buffalo's crease the opening Montreal needs? Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has posted an .812 save percentage through four appearances.

Home ice hasn't helped much either. The Canadiens are 1-2-0 at home, and Saturday night's 1-0 shootout win over Detroit was hardly a scoring breakout.

This is the first meeting of the season between the two clubs. They'll see each other again Saturday in Montreal.

Which brings it back to Matheson. Day to day can mean Wednesday in Washington. It can also mean a lot longer.

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