Canadiens Rumors & News

Pro Hockey Talk "The Montreal Canadiens shouldn’t ask “can Jesperi Kotkaniemi jump straight from the 2018 NHL Draft to the main roster?” Instead, they’re better off wondering if he should. Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin said that the 18-year-old will get a chance to..." July 20

Sportsnet "Forbes released its annual ranking of the 50 most valuable sports teams Wednesday, but not a single NHL franchise managed to crack the list. NFL teams dominated with the Dallas Cowboys sitting at No. 1 with a valuation of $4.8 billion, a 14 per cent increase from their..." July 18

The Hockey Writers "It’s almost mid-July and a number of questions remain about the Montreal Canadiens’ roster for the coming season. One pressing issue is the team’s defense. With the news that Shea Weber has undergone surgery on his knee, head coach Claude Julien will be starting the..." July 17

Sportsnet "Marc Bergevin had wrapped up 20-minute scrums in both of Quebec’s official languages and completed one-on-one interviews with all the major television outlets, but he still had one more thing he wanted to get off his chest. "We got a real player in that trade with..." July 16

TSN "The Montreal Canadiens have agreed to a three-year deal with forward Phillip Danaultworth $3.083 million per season, the club announced Saturday. He will become an unrestricted free agent in July of 2021. Last season, Danault had eight goals to go along with 17 assists in 52..." July 15

Last Word On Hockey "The Montreal Canadiens have signed right wing Joel Armia to a one-year deal worth $1.85 million. The Habs acquired Armia as part of a trade with the Winnipeg Jets on June 30th. Over his four-year NHL career, Armia has played for the Winnipeg..." July 13

Pro Hockey Rumors "The Montreal Canadiens will take a chance on a former top prospect, as they have signed Simon Despres to a professional tryout and invited him to their training camp. Despres played last season in the KHL, but indicated he would like another chance at an NHL career at some point. That chance is..." July 12

Sportsnet "The Max Domi-for-Alex Galchenyuk swap earned mixed reviews from the perspective of the Montreal Canadiens at the time, but it might not take long for fans to come around on their feisty new winger. The Canadiens had Domi read questions from Habs Nation on Twitter, and the results were..." July 11

NHL.com "Carey Price is looking forward to the Montreal Canadiens season but realizes it could be difficult without defenseman Shea Weber, who's expected to be out until December. "Obviously it's an important time of year for every team and you know which direction you're..." July 11

Pro Hockey Rumors "There has been speculation around Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty for months, with a trade out of town being the most likely final scenario for the scoring winger. Recently though there had been some who wondered if the Canadiens would re-open talks for an extension, something that..." July 10

The Hockey Writers "I remember the afternoon of April 27, 1980, clearly. Walking down Ste Catherine street, I saw a tall, lanky figure walking towards me. It didn’t take me long to recognize Larry Robinson, the Canadiens’ star defenseman, who would win the Norris Trophy later that year...." July 10

Pro Hockey Rumors "The purpose of the salary cap in the NHL is to maintain a sense of competitive balance across the league. That means both limiting how much a team can spend, the salary cap ceiling, but also ensuring that every team is competitive with a minimum expenditure, the salary cap floor. Some teams,..." July 10

The Score "Luke Richardson joined the coaching staff of the Montreal Canadiens, the team announced Monday. Richardson comes to the Canadiens after one year as an assistant coach with the New York Islanders. He previously spent three seasons as an assistant with..." July 09

Pro Hockey Rumors "When Shea Weber signed a 14-year, $110MM offer sheet from the Philadelphia Flyers in 2012, everyone knew right away that it would end badly. Yes, Weber was 27 years old and one of the top defensemen in the league, but the contract was top-heavy and carried a $7.86MM cap hit through..." July 08

Pro Hockey Rumors "After some bad news this morning, the Montreal Canadiens are having a better afternoon. The team has announced a two-year contract for promising young forward Jacob de La Rose, which will carry an average annual value of $900K. " July 05

Sportsnet "We now know that when Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin stood up at his July 1 press conference and talked about icing a competitive, young and fast team that should be able to make the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs, he wasn’t selling hope; he was selling a..." July 05

Montreal Gazette "The Canadiens provided a medical update on Shea Weber Thursday and it’s not good news. In fact, it’s terrible news for a team that finished 28th in the overall NHL standings last season when the veteran defenceman only played 26 games due to injuries. The..." July 05

Sportsnet "“I’m leaning towards patience,” Marc Bergevin said as he was heading into the NHL’s draft weekend with an opportunity to choose third overall and to add a total of 10 new prospects to the Montreal Canadiens’ coffers. When you think about it, there really..." July 02

NHL.com "Max Domi playing for the Montreal Canadiens will have a couple of their biggest former rivals rooting for them. The 23-year-old forward, acquired from the Arizona Coyotes in a trade for forward Alex Galchenyuk on June 15, is the son of Tie Domi, who played 11 seasons as a forward for..." July 01

Pro Hockey Rumors "The Montreal Canadiens have added one of the more interesting names on the free agent market, signing Matthew Peca to a two-year contract worth $1.3MM annually. Peca was a Group VI unrestricted free agent after failing to get a real chance to crack the lineup in Tampa Bay. " July 01

Pro Hockey Rumors "The Montreal Canadiens have committed to making their AHL team better this season, and have signed three players who could easily contribute to that. Xavier Ouellet, Kenny Agostino and Michael Chaput have all agreed to join the Montreal organization on two-way contracts, with the former two..." July 01

Sportsnet "Tomas Plekanec is returning to the Montreal Canadiens after signing a one-year contract with his former team. The contract is valued at $2.25 million. " July 01

Hockey Fights "The Montreal Canadiens announced on Sunday that they have agreed to terms with Jesperi Kotkaniemi on a three-year, entry-level contract (2018-19 to 2020-21). The agreement will see Kotkaniemi earn $832,500 at the NHL level with a signing bonus of $92,500 per season, for an..." July 01

Sportsnet "After being bought out by the Detroit Red Wings, defenceman Xavier Ouellet has found a new home with the Montreal Canadiens. Ouellet agreed to a one-year, two-way contract that is valued at $700,000 at the NHL level. " July 01

Sportsnet "The Montreal Canadiens have acquired goaltender Steve Mason and forward Joel Armia in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets. As part of the trade, the Jets are also sending a seventh-round pick in 2019 and a fourth-round pick in 2020 to Montreal. In return, Montreal is sending AHL defenceman..." June 30

Pro Hockey Rumors "Steve Mason’s time with the Canadiens lasted all of a few hours.  TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reports (Twitter link) that the team will place the goaltender on unconditional waivers for the purposes of buying out his contract.  He had one year and $4.1MM remaining on his..." June 30

The Score "Despite notching only 12 goals and 25 points last season, Los Angeles Kings winger Tobias Rieder is becoming quite the hot commodity in NHL free-agent circles. Related: Report: 4 Canadian teams have engaged in talks with Rieder Reports emerged earlier in the week regarding a..." June 30

Sportsnet "If we had to use one word to describe Jesperi Kotkaniemi, it would be “relaxed.” Not that you’d glean much from watching the Finnish centreman go through standard tests and drills the Montreal Canadiens ran during their first on-ice session at development camp on..." June 29

Pro Hockey Talk "It’s easy to understand why trading for Buffalo Sabres center Ryan O'Reilly could be too rich for many tastes. Even just directly, the 27-year-old costs a lot by way of his $7.5 million cap hit, which doesn’t expire until after the 2022-23 season. That actually is a..." June 28

Sportsnet "Marc Bergevin was on the verge of killing three birds with one stone this past weekend, and then reality got in the way. If things had gone according to plan, Bergevin would’ve walked away from the draft floor on Saturday having replenished the Montreal Canadiens’..." June 26

The Score "The Montreal Canadiens drafted center Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the third-overall pick in this year's NHL draft, but they don't appear to be finished addressing their needs down the middle of the ice. The Canadiens are among the list of teams that have called free-agent pivot..." June 25

Montreal Gazette "Could Anthony Duclair be coming home to play with good friend and former roommate Max Domi? Duclair, a 22-year-old Laval native, became an unrestricted free agent Monday when the Chicago Blackhawks failed to  present him with a qualifying offer by the 5 p.m. deadline. Any..." June 25

Sportsnet "Not even Filip Zadina was surprised when the Montreal Canadiens stepped to the podium in Dallas Friday night and called out Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s name with the third overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. You could see this move coming from a mile away. A team with a need at the..." June 23

The Score "Despite some brief rumblings on the draft floor Saturday, it appears Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty is staying put for now. Reports during the final rounds of the draft suggested Pacioretty could be on his way to the San Jose Sharks. Ultimately, those reports turned out to..." June 23

Pro Hockey Rumors "The Edmonton Oilers picked up another prospect goaltender today when they acquired Providence College’s Hayden Hawkey from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2019 fifth-round pick, according to TSN’s Brennan Klak. " June 23

Montreal Gazette "The Canadiens selected Finnish centre Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the No. 3 overall pick at the NHL Draft Friday night in Dallas. Kotkaniemi, a 6-foot-2, 181-pounder, was only ranked No. 6 among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting. In 57 games last season with Assat in the Finnish..." June 22

Sportsnet ""I’ll listen, I’m open," Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin said about his willingness to trade the third overall pick in the upcoming NHL Draft. He was holding court with the media last Saturday, mostly talking about his decision to trade Alex..." June 20

Pro Hockey Talk "Let’s go back in time a few years to the summer of 2012. The Montreal Canadiens are coming off of a disappointing 2011-12 season that saw them miss the playoffs, change head coaches, and fire their general manager. To fill those vacancies they hired Marc Bergevin away from the..." June 20

The Score "If the Buffalo Sabres decide to trade premier center Ryan O'Reilly, they have at at least three potential suitors. The center-needy Montreal Canadiens, Carolina Hurricanes, and St. Louis Blues have all shown interest in O'Reilly, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun...." June 20

Yardbarker "The Montreal Canadiens have been the biggest story of the last few days, after trading enigmatic winger—or is he a center?—to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Max Domi, a younger, cheaper option for their top-six. Domi signed on for another two seasons, at which point..." June 18

NHL.com "Max Domi couldn't be happier about being a member of the Montreal Canadiens. The 23-year-old forward praised his new team and its fans Saturday, the day after being traded by the Arizona Coyotes for forward Alex Galchenyuk. "The fans in that rink (Bell Centre) and..." June 18

Sportsnet "Meet Max Domi. We mean the real Max Domi. He’s not just the guy who you’ve been watching on YouTube; not just the guy whose statistics may have underwhelmed you when you frantically searched for something that might tell you the Montreal Canadiens made a wise decision in..." June 16

Pro Hockey Talk "If Hockey Twitter felt like too much of an “echo chamber” after the Arizona Coyotes landed Alex Galchenyuk from the Montreal Canadiens in a trade for Max Domi, consider that PHT readers also heartily believe that Arizona got the best end of the deal. As of this writing, it..." June 16

Sportsnet "Late on Friday night the Montreal Canadiens announced that they had completed a trade with the Arizona Coyotes, sending Alex Galchenyuk alone to the desert (literally this time) in exchange for Max Domi. On the face of that deal, it looks to be a substantial fleecing in..." June 16

The Score "Marc Bergevin can't quite put his finger on it, but there are qualities to Max Domi's game that he prefers to Alex Galchenyuk's. Domi, the newest member of the Montreal Canadiens, was acquired Friday in a deal that saw the Habs part with the former third-overall pick..." June 16

Montreal Gazette "The Montreal Canadiens agreed to terms on a two-year contract with forward Max Domi on Saturday. Domi was acquired on Friday from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for forward Alex Galchenyuk. The contract has an average annual value of US$3.15 million, the Canadiens said in a..." June 16

Sportsnet "Once the shock wears off, they’ll understand. I’m referring to the Montreal Canadiens fans who are currently losing their minds on every social network over the news that dropped just after 9:30 p.m. ET on Friday night — that general manager Marc Bergevin traded..." June 16

TSN "The Montreal Canadiens have acquired Max Domi from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Alex Galchenyuk. The 23-year old Domi was drafted in the first round (No. 12 overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft by the Phoenix Coyotes. Domi has posted three solid seasons with the Coyotes so far,..." June 15

Pro Hockey Rumors "It seems every few weeks the Montreal Canadiens get bad news on the injury front, and this time it’s top prospect Joni Ikonen. The team announced today that Ikonen underwent surgery on his right knee on Monday, and is expected to be out six months. The surgery was performed in Finland,..." June 14

Pro Hockey Rumors "Before the 2018-19 season even begins, there will be some conflict between divisional foes. The Montreal Canadiens and Detroit Red Wings are both coming off disappointing seasons and are looking to reinforce their franchises with their own high draft slots as well as acquired picks. Both teams..." June 10