Montreal Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis provided some clarity as to why it appeared leading scorer Cole Caufield was benched for much of the third period.
The fourth-year bench boss confirmed to reporters after their 3-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday that Caufield was dealing with an illness that limited his minutes, but that he will be making the trip to Ottawa for Wednesday's game against the Senators.
Caufield appeared to miss several shifts in the third period of what was then a tight, 2-1 game against the Canadiens' original-six rivals. He returned to the ice for a shift on Montreal's first power-play unit in the final minutes of the game.
The 25-year-old was limited to just 10:27 of playing time, during which he notched two shots on goal.
The Mosinee, Wisc., native leads the Canadiens with 37 goals in 63 games.
Tuesday's win brings Montreal's record to 35-18-10 — good for third in the Atlantic Division.
