Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

Joshua Roy missed the last two games for the Montreal Canadiens, not due to injury but as a coach’s decision. In fact, he only played 8:06 in his last game, which was in Philadelphia on March 27.

On Sunday against the Florida Panthers, it was Michael Pezzetta who entered the lineup to replace Arber Xhekaj.

Even though Martin St. Louis knew the veteran would barely play (5:43 in the end), he was preferred over the young Quebec prospect.

It’s a major decision that, unfortunately for Roy, speaks volumes.

It seems the writing is on the wall in Montreal for the 21-year-old forward, and all signs point to him being sent back to Laval sooner rather than later.

Oliver Kapanen to fill a major hole in the Canadiens’ lineup?

Let’s be honest, the Canadiens have a massive hole on their fourth line.

No reliable player has managed to take hold of that spot, and the Jake Evans/Joel Armia duo has been rotating through different linemates for a while now.

Kent Hughes could have addressed this issue at the trade deadline but seemed to prefer giving his current group a chance.

However, the GM may now have a solid internal opportunity to temporarily fix the problem.

During his trade deadline recap, Hughes mentioned that Oliver Kapanen could join the Laval Rocket once his season in Europe ended.

Oliver Kapanen to permanently replace Joshua Roy on the Montreal Canadiens?

Things have changed since March 7.

So much so that Anthony Marcotte mentioned he wouldn’t be surprised to see Kapanen join the Canadiens, not the Rocket, when his Swedish team is eliminated:

Though Kapanen had a tough start during his stint with the Canadiens, he bounced back in Sweden.

In 36 games, he tallied 15 goals and 20 assists for a total of 35 points.