The Montreal Canadiens will face the San Jose Sharks tonight, as the team starts its yearly trip in California. We reported earlier today that Joe Morrow will take Jordie Benn's spot in the lineup, but this isn't the only change Claude Julien made.
The team announced that Jacob De La Rose will be a healthy scratch, and that Torrey Mitchell will play on the fourth line.
Julien didn't give any information about why he chose Mitchell over De La Rose. However, The Athletic's Arpon Basu has a decent explanation:
"Torrey Mitchell is in the Canadiens lineup over Jacob De La Rose, which makes sense on many levels. De La Rose is a bigger body that might be more effective against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday, therefore playing Mitchell in San Jose the night before allows for that. Then there’s also the notion that Mitchell played in San Jose for the first five years of his NHL career, but Julien dismissed the idea."
Mitchell played two games this season, but wasn't able to record a point. He played for five years in San Jose, between 2007 and 2012.
