Canadiens' Johnny Kovacevic: Enters lineup, logs assist

Kovacevic had an assist, two blocked shots and one hit in Saturday's 4-3 loss to New Jersey.

Kovacevic initiated the offense with a two-line pass to Cole Caufield, who fed Nick Suzuki for Montreal's second goal. The assist snapped an eight-game point drought for Kovacevic, who replaced Jayden Struble (lower body) after being a healthy scratch for two games. Following a steady dose of activity to start the season, Kovacevic has been a healthy scratch in 10 of the last 25 games.