Plekanec is being held out of Saturday night's against the Lightning, Eric Engels of Sportsnet reports.

EDGE Analysis

With no injury to report, this looks like Montreal has reached a deal to trade the longest-tenured Canadien.

Plekanec finished with a goal and an assist in Thursday's 3-1 win over the Rangers.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec opened the scoring in the first period and added a helper on Phillip Danault's empty-netter late in the third. The veteran Czech center is expected to get moved by Monday's trade deadline, and potential suitors should be pleased with his four points over the past four games. Considering he only has six goals and 18 assists in 60 games, Plekanec's value will likely remain limited regardless of where he goes.

Plekanec is a trade target for the Penguins and Sharks, Sportsnet reports.

EDGE Analysis

It's a foregone conclusion the Canadiens will be trading the 34-year-old center before the trade deadline, and Plekanec will be a smart addition for a playoff-contending team. Particularly for the Sharks, who are without center Joe Thornton (knee) for an indefinite period of time. Plekanec's scoring touch is long gone -- though it could improve on a team with a better offense than Montreal -- but he's responsible defensively, competitive in the faceoff circle and regarded as good penalty killer.

Plekanec scored a goal and assisted on another in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Senators.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec scored for the first time since Dec. 16 when he deposited Thomas Chabot's gift-wrapped turnover in front of the Ottawa net late in the third period. The multi-point effort was also a long time coming, his first since Nov. 30. At 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) over 53 games, Plekanec's doing no favors for any fantasy team. He's probably going to be traded before the Feb. 26 deadline, so there's hope a change of scenery ignites the 35-year-old's offense.

Plekanec had two shots and two blocked shots over 16:56 of ice time in Thursday's 2-1 shootout win over the Lightning.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec's scoring drought has reached nine games, and he has just one over the last 27 games. He has just four goals and a career-worst 4.9% shooting percentage through 41 games. If the Canadiens can't climb into the playoff race -- they're currently eight points behind the Hurricanes for the final wild card in the Eastern Conference with five teams in between -- the 34-year-old center is a prime candidate to be moved at the trade deadline -- perhaps to a team with a better offense.

Plekanec scored the game-winner in overtime in Thursday's 2-1 win over the Devils. He finished with four shots, two hits and a blocked shot in 16:51 of ice time.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec had gone 17 straight games without tickling the twine, before he buried Thursday's winner. The Czech center went five-hole on New Jersey's Corey Schneider, finishing off a sublime feed from Charles Hudon, who won a puck battle with three Devils along the boards. The 34-year-old Plekanec has fit nicely with Hudon and Montreal's leading goal-scorer Brendan Gallagher, but has just four goals in 32 games.

Plekanec had an assist, two shots on goal and a hit over 17:08 of ice time in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Blues.

EDGE Analysis

That's three straight games with at least one assist and four in the last five for Plekanec, whose offense has been boosted by linemates Brendan Gallagher and Charles Hudon. The 34-year-old pivot has 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) in 29 games, outpacing his desultory 2016-17 season (28 points, 78 games).

Plekanec dished out a pair of assists in Thursday's win over the Red Wings.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec has struggled to produce consistently this season, managing just three goals and 11 points in 27 contests. The second-line center no longer plays on the power play and is trending downwards after a 10-goal 2016-17 campaign. The 35-year-old does still have some gas left in the tank and his 21 PIM and top-six role at least make him valuable in some deeper leagues.

Plekanec had two assists and a rare five-minute major in Thursday's 5-4 loss to Arizona.

EDGE Analysis

In a bit of irony, the Coyotes scored a game-tying goal in the third period while Plekanec, Montreal's best penalty killer, was serving time for his major infraction. The defense-first forward has experienced an uptick in production since he joined a line with Brendan Gallagher and Charles Hudon. Over the past nine games, the 35-year-old Czech has seven points (two goals, five assists) and is plus-9.

Plekanec and linemate Brendan Gallagher have been key pieces in the Canadiens' recent surge, Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette reports.

EDGE Analysis

Plekanec and Gallagher both struggled mightily last season, but they've been key pieces in Montreal's revival. After a slow start to the season, the Canadiens have won five of their last six games, which roughly tracks with the line changes implemented by head coach Claude Julien. One of the tweaks was putting Plekanec and Gallagher together on what's considered the third line. Over the Habs' six-game run, Plekanec has two goals and three assists while Gallagher checks in with four goals and three assists. Additionally, Plekanec is getting more ice time, averaging 17:20 over the last six games, compared to 14:45 over the first 10 games.