Canadiens Rumors & News

Sportsnet "The American Hockey League’s Board of Governors has approved moving the anticipated start date of the 2020-21 season to Feb. 5, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The league says further details about the upcoming campaign have yet to be determined. " October 28

The Score "Offer sheets are extremely rare in the NHL. Aside from the Montreal Canadiens' sad effort to poach Sebastian Aho from the Carolina Hurricanes last offseason, offer sheets have gone unsigned since the Calgary Flames' attempt to lure Ryan O'Reilly away..." October 28

ESPN "In an ideal world, Los Angeles Kings director of amateur scouting Mark Yannetti would currently be crisscrossing the globe in search of the next building block for his team's loaded prospect pool. He'd be digging in on the 2021 NHL draft class and starting to piece..." October 28

Sportsnet "Remember that feeling of coming home from the office, dropping a bag and flicking open a handful of overtaxed buttons to start the process of changing from the clothes you wear to satisfy society’s demands to the ones you exist in for 98 per cent of your home life? Of course you..." October 28

The Score "The Ontario Hockey League is a go in 2021. The major junior hockey league will play a condensed 40-game season beginning Feb. 4, according to Sportsnet's Jeff Marek. Each team typically plays 68 games in a normal season. Only four teams from each conference (eight..." October 28

Bleacher Report "On Oct. 20, the Chicago Blackhawks issued an open letter to their fans to indicate their intent to rebuild by developing young talent. This was a long time coming for a once-dominant franchise that has fallen out of Stanley Cup contender status. This approach was similar to..." October 27

Sportsnet "There’s an air of excitement about Geoff Molson that’s palpable through the phone. Over a 45-minute conversation with Sportsnet on Monday, optimism reigns — the owner of the Montreal Canadiens doesn’t know when revenue will start to flow again in a..." October 27

TSN "To say the 2020 version of free agency had little precedent is probably an understatement. The ongoing pandemic has really stung at the National Hockey League’s bottom line, and the business uncertainty facing teams around the league has had a substantial chilling effect on the..." October 27

The Province "The moving COVID-19 containment target for safe commencement of the 2020-21 National Hockey League season has shifted from Dec. 1 to Jan. 1 and possibly Feb. 1. A strong second infection waive of the worldwide pandemic virus has Canadian health officials pondering the viability of..." October 27

Sportsnet "The core of the NHL's off-season seems to be through — the draft is in the books, the majority of the biggest unrestricted free agents have chosen their new threads, and the quiet of summer (winter?) is setting in. But aside from business as usual, there's still one..." October 27

Featurd "Plenty of activity was expected in the NHL offseason trade market following the Stanley Cup playoffs. Before Oct. 1, there were eight trades involving established players. Among the notable moves was the Toronto Maple Leafs trading Kasperi Kapanen to the Pittsburgh Penguins,..." October 26

NHL.com "NHL Central Scouting's initial players to watch list for the 2021 NHL Draft was compiled in a manner unlike any before it. Game reports, video viewing and working the phone lines each was as vital this time as watching games in person, traditionally the life blood of scouting but..." October 26

Pro Hockey Rumors "The 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the “bubble playoffs”, were nothing short of an immense success for the NHL. The venture may have cost the league upwards of $90MM to put on and there were a few complaints after the fact about living conditions and scheduling, but the postseason was..." October 24

Pro Hockey Rumors "This has been one of the more interesting free agent classes in recent years.  We’re two weeks in and several notable forwards and quality defensemen are still available.  That’s not normal in a typical free agent year where most of the top players are gobbled up within..." October 24

The Score "NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that planning next season is proving to be a highly difficult task. "It's a totally different challenge and requires a whole bunch of different considerations that I think probably, in some respects, are more challenging than the return..." October 24

The Score "A number of the NHL's general managers are calling for the league to once again tweak its draft lottery format. During a virtual meeting Friday, multiple executives around the league argued to increase the odds for the teams that finish lowest in the standings, according..." October 23

The Score "The NHL is looking to hold opening day of the 2020-21 season at an aesthetically pleasing location to make it even more memorable, according to The Athletic's Michael Russo. Beginning the campaign at Lake Louise in Alberta was one possibility, but that idea has since been..." October 23

Bleacher Report "Want to start an argument among hockey fans? Wade into a particularly passionate group and casually bring up the topic of jerseys—or sweaters, to the purists out there—with a quick suggestion or two about the best and worst of all time. Then remove yourself to a..." October 23

Sportsnet "Two weeks into one of the most unique free-agency periods we've seen in the NHL, one of the top snipers on the market still finds himself without a team to play for in 2020-21. Few situations around the league exemplify just how odd this off-season is like that of Mike..." October 23

Pro Hockey Talk "While we rarely know what Marc Bergevin has up his muscle-challenged sleeves, he flips the script like few others in running the Montreal Canadiens. After another significant offseason of changes, it’s fair to wonder how coach Claude Julien feels about all of this. (It’s..." October 22

New York Post "Sorry, but I can’t allow someone as special as Doc Emrick to slip into retirement with just a few paragraphs in Monday’s paper on the day the announcement was made. Besides, we haven’t heard from those who similarly cherished him: his listeners. And since Monday..." October 22

TSN "The NHL has announced the postponement of the 2021 Winter Classic and the All-Star Game. The annual outdoor game was scheduled for Jan. 1 at Target Field in Minnesota. The All-Star Game was scheduled for Jan. 30 in Sunrise, FL. The postponements were expected as the dates were..." October 22

ESPN "The American Hockey League's target start date for the 2020-21 season is Dec. 4, but the league is preparing to offer another plan to its Board of Governors that could push it later. "We're getting close to Dec. 4, and there's been minimal improvement as far as fan..." October 22

The Score "Montreal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien maintains the club's emerging depth at forward played a part in Max Domi's trade to the Columbus Blue Jackets earlier this month. "You talk about (Nick) Suzuki, (Jesperi) Kotkaniemi, two young centers that..." October 22

SI "Ever start a workout and realize it’s just not your day? Maybe you had one too many sugary alcoholic drinks the night before and your head is pounding. Maybe the Popeyes chicken sandwich isn’t sitting right and the burpees make you want to throw up. So you call it. You shave a few..." October 22

Pro Hockey Talk "Last week, John Tortorella told The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline that he hopes the Max Domi trade can help the Blue Jackets open up their offense. During that interview with Portzline (sub required), Tortorella hoped that Blue Jackets team that “worked so..." October 22

ESPN "Retro gaming fans, rejoice: It's 2020, and NHL '94 is back. Electronic Arts announced in early October that the beloved game that often finds itself in the "Mount Rushmore of sports video games" conversation is officially getting the remaster treatment. Entitled..." October 21

Sinbin Vegas "We’ve heard it a lot from the Golden Knights front office, and we hear it pretty much any time any team ends up with a new high-end player. We had what we believe was an incredibly rare opportunity to add a defenseman, an elite player like Alex to our team. We really viewed it..." October 21

The Daily Goal Horn "The NHL season is expected to start sometime in January or February. That gives General Managers plenty of time to assess their teams from now until then to make a big trade. There are three big names rumored to be available and to be had in the right deal. They are Patrik Laine from..." October 20

The Score "Mike Hoffman's representative says his client isn't lacking suitors 11 days into free agency. Interest in the productive forward "has been very strong," Robert Hooper told The Athletic's Adam Vingan on Monday. Hooper revealed that 13 teams..." October 20

Habs Eyes On The Prize "The Montreal Canadiens have signed Kaiden Guhle to his entry-level contract. The three-year contract will technically start in the 2020-21 season but unless Guhle plays 10 games at the NHL level, the contract will slide and be automatically extended. It also will not count..." October 20

Broad Street Hockey "It’s been a little sleepy around here, since the draft has wrapped up and most of the big free agent signings are out of the way, but we’ve got some actual hockey news dropping on this fine Monday evening. That’s right, the World Juniors schedule is..." October 20

The Score "Legendary broadcaster Mike "Doc" Emrick announced his retirement Monday, and the hockey world is celebrating the 74-year-old's storied career and already missing his distinct voice. Here are kind words from the many people Emrick impacted over his 47-year career, along..." October 19

Sportsnet "Whenever a team makes big off-season moves, the cranks out there are quick to remind us that Stanley Cups are won in June, not the first day of free agency. (Well…you know.) Sure, you can’t secure your rings simply by making a few splashy moves, but the heavy lifting when..." October 19

Pro Hockey Rumors "With some uncertainty surrounding the state of the left side of their defense corps, the Bruins have shown some interest in defenseman Karl Alzner, reports Joe Haggerty of Boston Hockey Now.  The 32-year-old was bought out of the final two years of his contract by Montreal..." October 17

Bleacher Report "Though the NHL draft has come and gone, and the free-agency market has been open for a week (as of noon ET on Friday), the B/R ice hockey team hasn't gotten its player-movement fix. So we took a look at teams still in need of specific talent—not to mention others..." October 16

The Score "After seven months away from his place of work, an amateur scout for an NHL club drove into the parking lot of a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League arena and found a prime spot. The lot, usually bustling on game nights, was nearly empty. The scout, who had been asked by the league to..." October 16

Bleacher Report "It's been almost a week since the 2020 NHL free-agent market opened. A handful of unrestricted free agents, such as Alex Pietrangelo, Torey Krug and Jacob Markstrom, signed expensive long-term contracts despite a flattened salary cap and economic uncertainty..." October 16

Pro Hockey Rumors "The Canadiens are working on a loan agreement to loan Jesperi Kotkaniemi to Assat Pori of the SM-liiga, GM Marc Bergevin confirmed to reporters, including Sportsnet’s Eric Engels (Twitter link), on a media call earlier today.  The agreement is expected to be finalized over..." October 15

Russian Machine Never Breaks "Bill Foley was a guest on Las Vegas’s KSHP Radio on Wednesday and the Golden Knights’ owner revealed several bombshells to host Brian Blessing. For instance, why was Foley not concerned with trading first pairing defender Nate Schmidt to Pacific Division rival..." October 15

ESPN "The 2020 NHL free-agent frenzy has started to mellow out. The flat salary cap had teams scrambling to find the right fits under less-than-ideal financial conditions, leaving some free agents waiting to see if lucrative opportunities would still materialize. Here are the top..." October 15

Sportsnet "Nov. 30, 2014: Brendan Gallagher signs a six-year, $22.5-million extension with the Montreal Canadiens. The former 147th draft pick is locked in long-term after playing just 150 games in the NHL, two years and six weeks into the final season of his three-year, entry-level..." October 15

Sportsnet "The Montreal Canadiens have signed winger Brendan Gallagher to a six-year deal, the club announced Wednesday. Gallagher’s new deal carries a $6.5-million cap hit, amounting to $39 million in total over the entirety of the contract. The 28-year-old..." October 14

TSN "The Montreal Canadiens signed goaltender Jake Allen to a two-year, $5.75 million contract extension on Wednesday. Allen, acquired last month from the St. Louis Blues, will carry a cap hit of $2.875 million under the new deal, which begins in the 2021-22 season. He..." October 14

Pro Hockey Rumors "The dates for the upcoming arbitration hearings have been set, with the first three being held on October 20. Hearings will continue through November 8. It is important to remember that this offseason, once a hearing begins, teams are no longer allowed to negotiate with the player in..." October 14

Bleacher Report "Most of the best available players were quickly signed after the NHL's free-agent market opened at noon ET on Oct. 9. However, several free agents remain available who could fit in well on most rosters. Among the noteworthy forwards still unsigned include winger Corey..." October 13

Pro Hockey Talk "Now that Taylor Hall and Alex Pietrangelo both landed in unexpected spots in as NHL free agents, teams and fans must be wondering: who’s left? As different as things are right now, with 2020 NHL Free Agency in October, some things haven’t..." October 13

TSN "Extension talks between the Montreal Canadiens and forward Brendan Gallagher have broken off, Gallagher's agent Gerry Johannson told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun. Gallagher, who had 22 goals and 43 points in 59 games this past season, is entering the..." October 13

Habs Eyes On The Prize "Charles Hudon will play in the Swiss National League A for Lausanne HC in 2020-21, reports Guillaume Lefrançois of La Presse. Hudon, a fifth-round pick in 2012, was entering his final year of restricted free agency, and will be unrestricted by the time this deal..." October 13

The Score "The Montreal Canadiens signed forward Tyler Toffoli to a four-year contract carrying an average annual value of $4.25 million, the team announced Monday. Toffoli appeared in 68 games last campaign with the Los Angeles Kings and Vancouver Canucks. After..." October 12