- The Montreal Canadiens will be paying homage to one of their greats later this season, honoring the recently-retired P.K. Subban in a pregame ceremony on January 12th before the team takes on another of Subban’s former teams, the Nashville Predators. The former Norris Trophy winner spent his first seven seasons with the Canadiens before an infamous 2016 trade sent him to Nashville in a one-for-one swap with Shea Weber. Three years later, Nashville dealt Subban to the New Jersey Devils where he finished out his career. Subban ultimately retired this summer after hitting the free agent market.
Canadiens Rumors
Montreal Canadiens Loan Rem Pitlick To AHL
The Montreal Canadiens announced that they have loaned forward Rem Pitlick to the Laval Rocket, their AHL affiliate. In a related move, the team has also recalled forward Anthony Richard from Laval. Pitlick has bounced around between Montreal and Laval plenty this season, while this will be Richard’s first call-up since clearing waivers and being assigned to the Rocket back on October 5th.
Pitlick, 25, has done his best to ensure the shuffle hasn’t held him back too much this season. The forward has six points through nine games with Laval thus far, though he has just one point, a goal, in 14 games with Montreal. Still, the former Nashville Predators draft pick hasn’t been able to repeat his production from last season, where he had 15 goals and 22 assists over 66 games between Montreal and the Minnesota Wild.
Also a former Predators draft pick, Richard, who turns 26 on Tuesday, has dominated the AHL thus far this season, recording 31 points in 26 games, on pace to eclipse his previous career-high in the league of 47, recorded over 73 games back in 2018-19. Should he get into action for the Canadiens, it would be the Quebec native’s first action with the Canadiens and first NHL games since he played a single game with the Predators in 2019-20.
Montreal Canadiens Place David Savard On IR
The Montreal Canadiens announced this evening that they have placed defenseman David Savard on IR retroactive to December 4th. No additional transaction was announced, however the team is carrying seven defensemen, having been without the veteran since December 3rd.
Savard has been dealing with an upper-body injury apparently suffered during that December 3rd contest, and was originally considered day-to-day. On Tuesday of this week though, the Canadiens updated Savard’s status as being out two-to-three weeks. Placing Savard on IR now isn’t necessarily a bad sign as far as his recovery is concerned and could be a matter of giving the Canadiens some roster flexibility heading into the looming Christmas roster freeze, and perhaps indicates the team knows he won’t be back at least until things open up again.
Though some might say the Canadiens are performing above expectations this year, the team likely doesn’t see it that way and continues to fight for a playoff spot in the crowded Eastern Conference, now sitting at 14-15-2 after tonight’s loss. The team would certainly need to step it up a little to get into a Wild Card position, though that’s not unreasonable. However, getting back Savard, who is second on the team in average time-on-ice, only behind Mike Matheson, who’s played just nine games this season, will be key. Savard’s shutdown defense will be necessary considering the team, and its fairly inexperienced blueline, has struggled with keeping the puck out of their own net, ranking 23rd in the league in goals against.
Latest On Joel Edmundson Trade Interest
- The Montreal Canadiens have been better than expected this season, as they were the NHL’s worst team last year but have hovered around the .500 mark so far in 2022-23. Despite that, the team is still anticipated to engage other teams as a seller in next year’s trade market, and one of the players reportedly garnering interest from other teams is defenseman Joel Edmundson. On TSN’s Insider Trading segment, LeBrun reported that the Edmonton Oilers had interest in adding Edmundson, a 2019 Stanley Cup champion who has taken an important leadership role on a young Canadiens team.
Montreal Canadiens Release Injury Updates
The Montreal Canadiens have updated several injury statuses, including one that fans of the team were dying to hear about. Cole Caufield will travel with the team and is available for tomorrow’s game against the Ottawa Senators. For David Savard and Sean Monahan, things aren’t so positive. Both players will be out for two to three weeks. Mike Matheson and Jonathan Drouin are listed as day-to-day, though the latter will travel with the team to Ottawa.
Caufield’s status is the most encouraging after he took a huge hit from Trevor Lewis last night that looked like it might keep him out for a while. The young forward is off to a brilliant start to the season with 16 goals and 25 points in 28 games. His continued development under head coach Martin St. Louis is one of the biggest successes of the year for Montreal, and one that will likely lead to a huge extension at some point for the diminutive sniper.
Monahan’s injury, though, is terrible for the team. Not only was he playing excellent hockey, rebounding from hip surgery nicely, but he had become one of Montreal’s top trade chips. The pending free agent could be an excellent addition for a contending team looking for center depth, but he’ll have to stay healthy. A weeks-long absence doesn’t take him off the board but will certainly cause some hesitation in teams that might have been focusing in on him as a target.
Savard is back to playing big minutes for the club this season but still doesn’t have strong results. The 32-year-old is signed through 2024-25 and has eight points through 24 games this year. While he isn’t driving play for the Canadiens, the team doesn’t have the deepest group to choose from and will be icing quite a few young defensemen in his absence.
Injury Notes: Caufield, Stützle, Tanev
After exiting tonight’s game early in the second period with an upper-body injury, Montreal Canadiens star sniper Cole Caufield will not return, according to the team. He was hit hard in front of the Canadiens’ net by Flames forward Trevor Lewis and reached for his head after the collision.
Caufield and Nick Suzuki’s chemistry have been instrumental in helping the Habs hover around the .500 mark this far into the regular season. Caufield’s 16 goals lead the team, and his 25 points in 27 games are second behind Suzuki’s 29. Any long-term absence from their top goal-scorer will be extremely difficult to overcome.
- Another Canadian team also lost an important young forward tonight. Ottawa Senators center Tim Stützle left their game against the Anaheim Ducks and did not return after sustaining an upper-body injury in the first frame, per the team. He was checked by Ducks forward Brett Leason, who was given an interference penalty on the play. Stützle’s 27 points are second on the team, and they’re already without their other top center in Josh Norris.
- For Calgary, they lost defenseman Chris Tanev after taking a puck to the face. The veteran stayed down on the ice after the impact but didn’t require a stretcher and was helped off the ice by teammates. If Tanev is to miss time, Calgary will need to recall another defenseman with MacKenzie Weegar battling an illness.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Montreal Canadiens
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2022-23 season and beyond. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Montreal Canadiens
Current Cap Hit: $93,451,094 (over the $82.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Cole Caufield (one year, $880.8K)
D Kaiden Guhle (three years, $863K)
D Jordan Harris (one year, $842.5K)
F Juraj Slafkovsky (three years, $950K)
D Arber Xhekaj (two years, $828.3K)
Potential Bonuses
Caufield: $850K
Guhle: $420K
Harris: $507.5K
Slafkovsky: $3.5MM
Total: $5.2775MM
Slafkovsky has the richest entry-level deal in league history as the ceilings got a small boost this season (and will go up again in 2024 and 2026). The first-overall pick has had a limited role so far as they ease him with a decision on whether or not to run him past the 40-game mark and accrue a season of service time still to come. If he can become the impact power forward they hope he can be in the next couple of seasons, he’s a strong candidate to bypass the bridge deal. With the limited usage, he’s unlikely to achieve any of his bonuses at this point.
Caufield’s next contract is shaping up to be an intriguing one already. He recently reached 100 career NHL regular season appearances but has been one of the top goal-scorers in the league dating back to midway through last season. If Montreal wants to sign him to a max-term agreement (which they likely do at this point), they’ll have to make him the highest-paid forward on the team (and in franchise history) while a bridge contract could run in the range of Jason Robertson’s $7.75MM with Dallas. Notably, he still is five years away from UFA eligibility so a four-year bridge deal (like Robertson’s) is a legitimate option for both sides to consider. He’s on pace to reach all his ‘A’ bonuses.
Guhle hasn’t been eased into things in his rookie season, logging more than 20 minutes a night, often on the top pairing. If he stays in that role, he’s likely to hit his two ‘A’ bonuses this season and if he continues there for the next couple of years, he’s someone GM Kent Hughes will likely want to try to lock up long term. Harris, meanwhile, already is in line for a new deal after burning his first season down the stretch last year. He’s likely heading for a bridge contract with an AAV likely checking in a bit below the $1.5MM range while he’s on pace to hit his two ‘A’ bonuses and most of his ‘B’ ones for games played. Xhekaj has gone from being an undrafted free agent signing a year ago to a regular in Montreal’s lineup on the third pairing. Having burned the first year while playing in junior last season, he’ll be hard-pressed to command a long-term second deal and is likely heading for a bridge contract himself, potentially a little above the $1.5MM mark if he remains a fixture on the third pair.
Signed Through 2022-23, Non-Entry-Level
F Paul Byron ($3.4MM, UFA)
F Evgenii Dadonov ($5MM, UFA)
F Jonathan Drouin ($5.5MM, UFA)
F Sean Monahan ($6.375MM, UFA)
F Michael Pezzetta ($750K, RFA)
Calgary had to pay a high price tag (a first-round pick in either 2024, 2025, or 2026) to dump the final year of Monahan’s deal, allowing them to sign Nazem Kadri in the process. He has recovered well from the hip issues that plagued him over the last couple of years and is at his highest point-per-game pace since 2018-19. As a capable defensive forward that can kill penalties and do well at the faceoff dot, it’s certainly not impossible to think that he could get some interest as a second-line center on the open market this summer. If that happens, there’s a good chance that Monahan could land a contract similar to this one, a scenario that not many would have thought possible at this time a year ago.
Drouin hasn’t panned out as expected when Montreal sent Mikhail Sergachev (plus a conditional second-round pick that didn’t materialize) to Tampa Bay to secure him. He has the skills to play in the top six but hasn’t been able to produce with consistency or stay in the lineup with any consistency. He’s a prime candidate for a one-year pillow value elsewhere next season to try to rebuild some value in a new situation. Dadonov was picked up from Vegas in exchange for Shea Weber’s LTIR contract with the Canadiens likely hoping that they could flip him with retention at the trade deadline. Instead, he’s off to the worst start of his career offensively. His next deal could be closer to the $2MM mark if not a bit lower and at that point, it’s possible that he could look to return to the KHL if a significant offer materializes there.
Byron’s availability to play this season is in question as he continues to battle hip trouble. If he’s able to play next year, Byron would be eligible for a one-year deal with incentives due to his injuries (even though he’s not 35); such a contract would likely have a base salary closer to $1MM before bonuses. Pezzetta is on his first career one-way contract and has had a limited role so far. Assuming that continues, even with arbitration rights, it’s unlikely he’d be able to land more than $1MM for next season.
Signed Through 2023-24
D Joel Edmundson ($3.5MM, UFA)
F Mike Hoffman ($4.5MM, UFA)
G Samuel Montembeault ($1MM, UFA)
F Rem Pitlick ($1.1MM, UFA)
D Chris Wideman ($762.5K, UFA)
Hoffman was expected to help Montreal’s power play but that hasn’t been the case over his first year and a bit with the team to the point where he was scratched earlier this season. He’ll need to produce with much more consistency in the back half of this deal to have a shot at matching this price tag in 2024. Pitlick played well after coming to the Canadiens on waivers last season, earning this two-year deal, his first one-way pact. However, some early struggles landed him on the waiver wire again this season where he passed through unclaimed. Barring a change in his production, he’ll be in tough to match let alone beat this contract two summers from now.
Edmundson has battled injury trouble this season and last but when he has been in the lineup, he has been a dependable second-pairing option that can kill penalties and play physically. There’s a ceiling for those types of players in terms of their earnings upside but a small raise closer to the $4MM mark on a multi-year agreement could be doable if he’s able to stay healthy as he’ll hit the market at 31. Wideman is on a minimum deal for the second straight season and has a very limited role. In his second stint in the NHL, he’s more of a depth player so it’s likely that his next deal will also be close to the minimum salary.
Montembeault’s first full NHL season was a rocky one with Montreal struggling mightily last season. That allowed the team to give him a low-cost two-year commitment that could be fully buried in the minors. However, he’s off to a much better start this season and is starting to push for a little more playing time. He’s making well below the league average for a backup and a decent showing the rest of the way this season and next could push him closer to the $1.75MM range at least. Otherwise, he might be looking at something closer to this deal, a lower-cost one-way pact on a cap-strapped team.
Signed Through 2024-25
G Jake Allen ($2.875MM in 2022-23, $3.85MM in 2023-24/2024-25, UFA)
F Joel Armia ($3.4MM, UFA)
F Christian Dvorak ($4.45MM, UFA)
F Jake Evans ($1.7MM, UFA)
D Johnathan Kovacevic ($766.7K, UFA)
D David Savard ($3.5MM, UFA)
Dvorak was acquired to replace Jesperi Kotkaniemi in the 2021 offseason with the hopes that he could become a legitimate second-line center. That hasn’t happened yet. Instead, he appears to be heading for another season around the 30-point mark. His defensive game and faceoff ability give him some extra value but if this type of production is indeed his ceiling, he’s going to be in tough to get more than this on the open market. A similar contract is possible but even in a pricier cap environment, it’s hard to see him pushing for $5MM.
Armia’s strong showing in Montreal’s improbable run to the Stanley Cup Final strengthened his market to the point where he was able to land this commitment. Since then, he has 16 points in 76 games. Armia can kill penalties but he’s more of a fourth liner that should have a price tag closer to half of his current one. Evans had a strong year last season with 28 even-strength points in a bottom-six role but his playing time has been more limited this year. If he can get back to pushing for 30 points in that lower spot on the depth chart, he could generate enough interest to push his AAV past the $2MM mark in 2025.
Savard is playing a much bigger role than he was used to at the end of his time with Columbus (and a brief stint in Tampa Bay) as he sits second on the team in ATOI. Right now, they’re getting some value for their buck but he’ll turn 35 early on his next deal and at that point, Savard will likely be best suited for a third-pairing role. That should push his price tag down a little bit. Kovacevic was claimed off waivers late in training camp and has played in most of Montreal’s games since then. It’s still a bit early to forecast what’s next as he’s a late-bloomer rookie but if he plays more often than not on this deal, he could have a shot at doubling his AAV on the open market. If Kovacevic turns into a full-time regular, the cost will only go up.
Allen has had some ups and downs since effectively taking over as the starter last season, a role he struggled with when he had it in St. Louis. Even with the inconsistency, what he’s making now is well below market value for a starter and on his next contract, as long as he can hold down a regular spot in the platoon, Montreal should get a reasonable return on it as well.
Mike Matheson Day-To-Day With Lower-Body Injury
- After he didn’t play last night against the Los Angeles Kings, the Montreal Canadiens confirmed that defenseman Mike Matheson is in-fact injured, dealing with a lower-body injury. Fortunately, this doesn’t seem to be as bad as the abdominal injury that kept him out the first 17 games of the season., the team announcing the injury as day-to-day. The veteran has only played in nine games so far this season while dealing with injury, but does have an impressive six points in that span. Matheson is in his first season with Montreal after coming back the other way from the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Jeff Petry trade.
Canadiens Notes: Hoffman, Matheson, Gallagher, Monahan
The Canadiens got both some good news and bad news on the injury front today. The team announced (Twitter link) that winger Mike Hoffman will be activated off injured reserve and suit up tonight against Los Angeles. The veteran has five goals and three assists through his first 16 games of the season and will at least give Montreal 12 healthy forwards to use after finishing up their road trip with only 11 healthy ones.
Meanwhile, defenseman Mike Matheson will be unavailable tonight due to an undisclosed injury. He left practice early on Friday and while he took part in the morning skate, he obviously isn’t healthy enough to play. The 28-year-old has six points in his first nine games with Montreal while logging a team-high 24:25 per night on the back end.
More from Montreal:
- To make roster room for Hoffman’s activation, the Canadiens moved winger Brendan Gallagher to injured reserve. The veteran has missed the last four games due to a lower-body injury and is expected to miss at least a few more days before being cleared to return. Montreal was eligible to back-date the placement and if they did so, Gallagher could be activated at any time.
- Center Sean Monahan is still sporting a walking boot, notes Marc-Antoine Godin of The Athletic (Twitter link). He was able to play through his foot injury for a few games but left Monday’s game early and hasn’t skated since then. There’s no timetable for his return. Monahan figures to be one of the more prominent middlemen available at the trade deadline after putting up 17 points in his first 25 games so it’s likely that Montreal will play things safe with the injury and not rush him back.
Simon Nemec To Play In World Junior Championship
The Canadian team got a pair of reinforcements this week when Brandt Clarke and Shane Wright were loaned away from their NHL organizations, and it appears as though the Slovakian team will get a similar boost. Miroslav Satan, who is now the president of the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation, confirms that the New Jersey Devils will be loaning Simon Nemec to play at the tournament.
Nemec will be joined by Montreal Canadiens first-round pick Filip Mesar, who is currently playing with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL. Satan did not mention Juraj Slafkovsky, likely meaning that the first-overall pick will remain with the Canadiens instead of playing the junior tournament.
The 18-year-old Nemec was the second-overall pick this summer, giving Slovakia a sweep of the top two spots. That was a historic moment for the country’s hockey program, just as the bronze medal at the 2022 Olympics proved to be.
At the World Juniors, Slovakia has never placed higher than third. They took home a bronze in 2009, thanks to an incredible tournament from Tomas Tatar, and in 1999, thanks to Marian Gaborik and Ladislav Nagy (in 1993, just after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the two nations competed together and finished in third place).
With Nemec, Mesar, and other impressive youngsters in place (including 17-year-old Dalibor Dvorsky, a top prospect for the 2023 draft), Slovakia will try to reach the gold medal game for the first time.