Montreal Canadiens

Brian Gionta, one of the Canadiens' prized free agent acquisitions, is out of the lineup indefinitely with a broken bone in his foot.

Gionta was injured when he was struck in the foot by a shot in the third period of the Nov. 3 game against Atlanta. It was originally believed to be nothing more than a bruise, and he continued to play. But the pain became so unbearable that he pulled himself out of the warmup for the Nov. 14 game in Nashville. An X-ray and an MRI this week revealed the broken bone.

The team was reluctant to speculate on how long Gionta would be out, but defenseman Hal Gill has been sidelined since Nov. 2 because of a similar injury and hasn't resumed skating.

Coach Jacques Martin suggested that the injuries to Gill and Gionta were preventable, and he has asked the team's equipment staff to review the protective equipment used by the team. There are exterior protective guards available for skates. Several Canadiens have used them in the past but discarded them because they were uncomfortable or didn't look good. Martin said it was possible that the team would make this equipment mandatory.

Gionta's absence leaves a major hole in the top two lines. Gionta had good chemistry with Scott Gomez, his linemate when they both played for New Jersey, and Mike Cammalleri. In the three games since Gionta shut it down, Martin has used rookie Ryan White, Glen Metropolit and Travis Moen, who got his chance Friday in Washington and scored his fifth goal of the season.

But there could be more problems on the horizon. Gomez left the Washington game Friday with a "lower-body injury." He said he didn't think it was serious, but that's what Gionta said.

CANADIENS 3, CAPITALS 2: The Canadiens made the most of their opportunities as they scored three goals on eight shots over the final two periods. Montreal did a good job of containing Alexander Ovechkin. He had five shots on net but the Canadiens blocked another six. Carey Price was solid in goal as he stopped 32 shots. He has a 4-2 record in his last six starts with a 1.95 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage.

• With defenseman Ryan O'Byrne and right winger Georges Laraque returning to the lineup, the Canadiens returned defenseman Mathieu Carle and forward Gregory Stewart to the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League.

• The Canadiens won the battle of special teams. They successfully killed off three Washington power plays, including one in the final 1:52 of the game. The Canadiens went 1-for-2 on their power plays.

Quote To Note:

"It felt like 10 minutes out there, especially when it was 6-on-4 and I lost my stick. All I could see was a lot of red out there."

—Canadiens goaltender Carey Price on facing a Washington power play over the final 1:52 of the game.

Goaltenders:

Jaroslav Halak, Carey Price.

Defensemen:

Roman Hamrlik, Jaroslav Spacek. Josh Gorges, Jay Leach, Paul Mara, Marc-Andre Bergeron, Mathieu Carle.

First Line:

Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez, Travis Moen.

Second Line:

Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, Andrei Kostitsyn.

Third Line:

Guillaume Latendresse, Maxim Lapierre, Ryan White.

Fourth Line:

Tom Pyatt, Glen Metropolit, Georges Laraque.

Player Notes:

• C Tomas Plekanec scored his fifth goal of the season and added an assist and leads the Canadiens with 21 points. He has a goal and six assists in the past four games.

• G Carey Price improved his record for the season to 6-8 and he's 4-2 in his last six starts. He made 32 saves.

• LW Mike Cammalleri scored a power-play goal for the game-winner. He's the Canadiens' leading scorer with nine.

Medical Watch:

• C Scott Gomez left the Washington game on Nov. 20 with a lower-body injury. There was no immediate word on the severity of the injury.

• RW Brian Gionta was a last-minute scratch for the Nov. 14 game in Nashville. Subsequent tests showed that he suffered a broken bone in his foot when he stopped a puck in the Nov. 3 game against Nashville. The Canadiens said he will be out indefinitely.

• D Andrei Markov was cut on the leg by G Carey Price's skate in the Oct. 1 season opener in Toronto. He had surgery to replace damaged tendons and has started doing weight work and riding a stationary bike. He will be out of the lineup until February.

• D Ryan O'Byrne suffered a knee injury in the first period of the Buffalo game on Oct. 3 and he returned to line Friday in Washington.

• RW Matt D'Agostini suffered a concussion when he was hit in the head by Chicago's Andrew Ladd on Oct. 30. He is out indefinitely but has resumed skating on his own.

• D Hal Gill was placed on the injured list on Nov. 2 with a hairline fracture in his foot. Coach Jacques Martin said Gill had been playing with the injury for three weeks and doctors advised him to rest. He's expected to return in late November.

• RW Georges Laraque was placed on the injured list on Nov. 5 to make room for defenseman Jay Leach. Laraque, who had been listed as day-to-day with a back injury, returned to the lineup Nov. 20 in Washington. It was his game since Oct. 20 when he logged three minutes against Atlanta.