Byron to undergo more tests, Shaw still awaiting the green light

BROSSARD - It remains to be seen if the Canadiens will be deprived of Paul Byron's services for Tuesday night's game against the Anaheim Ducks.

The 29-year-old forward was forced to leave Sunday afternoon's tilt with an upper-body injury sustained during the second period after taking a hit from Edmonton Oilers defenseman Matt Benning.
According to head coach Claude Julien, Byron is doubtful for the upcoming contest versus Randy Carlyle's squad.
The Canadiens' No. 41 will undergo further tests, though, to ultimately determine his playing status.
"It's not his shoulder. It's more his forearm area, and that's what they're going to look at now and we'll see what comes out of it," explained Julien, following Monday's practice at the Bell Sports Complex. "He's going through some more exams, so once we get the clear diagnosis, we'll be more than happy to give it to you."

Losing Byron for any period of time would be tough, of course.
During his press conference, the Habs' bench boss lauded the nine-year NHL veteran's skill set both on and off the ice.
"He puts other team's defensemen on their heels all the time, a little bit like [Connor] McDavid does to everybody else - and Paul has that unbelievable speed. But, he also has that grit. He plays like a 6-foot-3 player. He goes into traffic. He pushes and he pushes back. He grinds. Those are players that inspire the rest of your team - 'If he can do it, we need to be able to do the same thing, too.' He's a good leader that way," praised Julien. "Every day, he works on his game. He puts that game face on. He doesn't come here to goof around. He comes here to work. He comes here to do his job, and I think he sets a really good example for a lot of players, especially younger players."

For his part, Andrew Shaw was back on the ice again on Monday. He has yet to receive the green light from the Canadiens' medical staff to return to the lineup, though.
You'll recall that Shaw hasn't seen game action since New Year's Eve in Dallas when he suffered a neck injury.

"I think we're being extremely careful in his case because of his history," affirmed Julien, referencing the 27-year-old forward's previous concussion issues.
When asked if Shaw could be available against Anaheim, however, Julien indicated that he "[isn't] writing anything off."
Big week on tap
After battling the Ducks, the Canadiens will play host to the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday before squaring off against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday to close out the week.
It's a busy stretch, to say the least, especially when you consider that the Habs played another set of back-to-back games over the weekend.
Picking up three out of a possible four points versus New Jersey and Edmonton has Julien's troops feeling good about themselves, but they have to find a way to keep things rolling.

Their 7-2-1 record in their last 10 games is a good indicator that they can definitely achieve that objective.
"We're happy, but we aren't satisfied. We know that our last game [against Edmonton] wasn't our best. We just have to focus on our next set of games," stressed Nicolas Deslauriers. "We know that we can be better than that."
Matthew Peca shared similar thoughts on Monday after the brief skate came to a close.
"I think we're doing good things, but we have to improve certain aspects of our game," mentioned Peca. "We want to keep things going this week."
Kotkaniemi continues to thrive
Being an NHL rookie isn't easy by any means, but Jesperi Kotkaniemi isn't showing any signs of slowing down.
After lighting the lamp against New Jersey and Edmonton, the 18-year-old Finn will be looking to stretch his scoring streak to three straight games on Tuesday night.
Julien believes there are multiple reasons why Kotkaniemi has been flying high of late.
"He's got the size to start with. Already this year, he's improved in that area. He's a lot stronger than he was at the beginning of the year. I think his durability is pretty good," explained Julien. "At the same time, we didn't throw him to the wolves right off the bat. We gave him 12 to 14 minutes a game. We broke him in, we didn't overutilize him. Now, he's getting a little bit better, so at times when he's having a great game, we're giving him more ice time. To his credit, he's done all the right things to continue to be a real successful player so far."

Seeing Kotkaniemi seize his opportunity and steadily come into his own has been a real thrill for Julien over the last four-plus months.
"The way he has continued to develop is really, really good. It's not just seeing him shoot more and score more, but even play better defensively in our own end. He's doing good work," mentioned Julien. "He realizes that this part of the game is really important at our level. I congratulate him for that maturity to develop in all situations. His personality and character is contagious. Everyone loves to see him have success. He's an easy guy to love."