CANADIENS' JOEL ARMIA FINALLY OUT OF COVID PROTOCOL; WON'T BE PLAYING ANY TIME SOON

Some good news for the Montreal Canadiens Tuesday as forward Joel Armia was released from COVID-19 protocol after being placed on the list more than two weeks ago. However, head coach Dominique Ducharme says it will be a while before he's back in the lineup.

Ducharme told reporters Armia is allowed back around the team, but he needs "a considerable amount of conditioning" before returning to the ice.

While the team has never discussed particulars, it appears Armia must have been fairly ill for a while. He and teammate Jesperi Kotkaniemi were placed in COVID protocol on March 22nd. Kotkaniemi was released a few days later. The Habs would only say that one player contracted a COVID-19 variant, while the other was a close contact. Given the space between each player returning, it's not difficult to tell which was which in this case.

With Brendan Gallagher suffering a broken thumb in a game against Edmonton Monday, the Canadiens could use Armia in the lineup. There's no specific timetable for when he'll be able to play at the moment. Armia has five goals and five assists in 24 games this season.

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