Montreal Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme said Friday that there's a small chance that forward Brendan Gallagher could play in Saturday's game against the Florida Panthers.

Gallagher left midway through Thursday's 4-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes with a lower-body injury.

He did not take part in practice on Friday, with Jonathan Drouin taking his place on the top line. Ducharme added that if Gallagher can't play, forward Cam Hillis will dress on Saturday.

The 29-year-old, who spent much of this month on the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list, has four goals and 10 points in 25 games this season.