LEWISTON — For the next three games, all of which have important playoff implications for the Lewiston Maineiacs, the team will play without two of its most important pieces.

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League suspended defensemen Olivier Dame-Malka and Sam Finn three games each for a pair of separate on-ice altercations in Friday’s contest against the Rimouski Oceanic.

Dame-Malka’s suspension stems from a collision near center ice that officials say was an intentional knee-to-knee hit. On-ice officials did not call a penalty on the play.

Finn’s suspension comes after he participated in a fight during Friday’s game. He was assessed a five-minute fighting major following the altercation Friday, and has been suspended after further review for being the aggressor in that fight.

Both players will miss Tuesday’s home game against Shawinigan, Saturday’s home contest against Cape Breton and Tuesday, Feb. 8’s matchup on the road against Montreal.

“It costs us to lose two good defensemen for three games,” Maineiacs’ coach J.F. Houle said. “It will give the rest of the defensemen an opportunity to step up and see more ice time.

“It’s not going to be easy,” Houle continued, “but we have some good ‘D’ here, and we feel they can all play.”

Houle also said that the team may rotate a forward — perhaps Alex Zafiris — into the defensive fold for a few games.

“He has experience playing there for a few games earlier this year,” Houle said of Zafiris. “And on the power play, we have some forwards who can play the point, too. We have five defensemen, and plenty of teams go with five defensemen for a short time, so that’s the plan for now.”

Despite the shortfall of defensemen, Houle said nothing about the team’s game plan against Shawinigan has changed.

“It’s still all about hard work, no matter who is on the ice,” Houle said. “If we work hard, we can play with anyone in the league, no matter who’s out there. We really believe that.”

Lewiston and Shawinigan are scheduled to face off at 7 p.m. Tuesday.