Author: Dose

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Anthony Beauvilier interested in joining the Canadiens

Anthony Beauvilier enjoyed an excellent second half of the season.

As a member of the Capitals, he revitalized his career with five points in 18 regular-season games and six in 10 playoff games.

Against the Canadiens in the playoffs, he was a key forward. And today, he confessed he wouldn’t say no to a stint with his childhood team. If Kent Hughes calls, he’ll listen carefully.

The Québécois admits he liked Washington and would like to stay there, but if the Caps don’t want him anymore, he’d potentially like to play in Montreal.

I want to know the number of years, I want to know how many, but yes, for sure, if the phone rings and it’s the Canadiens, I’ll think about it a lot. – Anthony Beauvilier

The man who scored 271 points in 631 games with six different teams in the Bettman circuit says that playing against the Habs is great, but wearing their colors wouldn’t be bad either.

Unfortunately for him, I don’t see him with the Canadiens. Trios three and four are well-stocked at the moment, and if Beauvilier were to land in the metropolis, he’d be taking the place of a youngster, in my opinion. And if he were on the first two Montreal trios, there’d be a bit of a problem…

He’ll always remember his first playoff game at the Bell Centre in 2025. In front of family, friends and everyone watching the series, he said it was one of the best experiences he’d had in his career.

Let’s hope he gets to experience it again, this time in a red-white-and-blue uniform.

Overtime

– To think the Leafs would pay him close to $11 million.

– The players continue to celebrate.

– Well done.

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Chances of Connor McDavid staying in Edmonton: “100%”

In the last few days, the Oilers have experienced a terrible disappointment, for the second year in a row.

But fans can be even sadder to read the latest rumours about captain Connor McDavid’s future in Edmonton: McDavid to Tampa Bay here, McDavid to leave Edmonton there…

But earlier in the evening, two very credible journalists in Frank Seravalli and Bob Stauffer probably made Oilers fans’ day. Indeed, both think it’s a certainty (100%) that the captain will stay in town. “Not 99%, 100%.”

Needless to say, 97 will become the highest-paid player of all time on July 1, 2026.

And, according to Seravalli and Stauffer, who don’t give a damn about making good radio, clearly, it’ll be with the Oilers who gets that contract.

Here are the other rumours/news of the day:

Brock Boeser to Minnesota, Marco Rossi to Vancouver?

In recent weeks, Marco Rossi has been attracting a lot of attention in Vancouver.

He’s also attracting attention from the Flames.

But today, via Nick Kypreos, we learn that Boeser is close to an agreement with Minnesota. Negotiations before July 1 ?

The Canucks forward is out of contract on July 1. So it won’t be a trade for Rossi, but the two could go their separate ways.

We know it’s the end of the road for these two forwards on their respective teams.

The Leafs, following in the Panthers’ footsteps?

The Leafs liked the Panthers’ strategy so much that they want to emulate it.

How? By granting contracts to all their free agents. According to Kypreos, Toronto wants to give contracts to Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad.

In fact, the journalist doesn’t see how Marchand doesn’t end up in the Queen City.

Obviously, the Leafs don’t have the money to sign all three, but signing one of them would be a good start.

In Ekblad’s case, an offer from Toronto would depend on being able to convince Morgan Rielly to waive his no-move clause.

Another player who is and will be eternally linked to the Leafs is John Tavares. Teams and agents think the center could have a similar pact to Brock Nelson. That’s what Elliotte Friedman mentioned on his 32 thoughts podcast .

The Avalanche forward has just signed a three-year/$7.5 million deal.

News from the Metropolitan

The Metropolitan Division is wide open.

There are the Hurricanes and possibly the Rangers and Capitals, but otherwise, the teams are decent, without more.

Of the decent teams, there are the Flyers and Islanders. In New York, the plan isn’t too clear. Mathieu Darche doesn’t seem to want to rebuild, or at least he doesn’t want to trade Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat.

But star defenseman Noah Dobson is being shopped around.

He’s worth a lot of money.

In Philadelphia, Daniel Brière’s club has a lot of holes, but none as big as in front of the net.

No wonder the Flyers are in the market for a goalie. Carey Pr- Ah well, never mind.

Overtime

– More rumours from Edmonton.

– Good for him.

– Oh well.

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Brent Burns could be a good replacement for David Savard

With the retirement of David Savard, who will officially retire from the Canadiens on July 1, there will be a hole on the right-hand side of the Montreal blue line.

Will David Reinbacher be able to fill it? One day. But will he be able to do so as early as game one of the next regular season? The question arises because, after all, the Austrian is coming back from a serious injury and had trouble playing regularly, even after his return to action.

In Laval in 2024-2025, he played just 23 games, including the playoffs. That’s not enough.

I think he’ll start at the bottom and make it to the NHL by the end of the year (not season).

A right-hander who could well replace Savard is not in-house, but with the Hurricanes. His name is Brent Burns. Eric Engels of the Sick Podcast wondered.

Burns is a 40-year-old right-handed defenseman who plays well on both sides of the rink. He has a nice offensive flair, although in 2025, his production has slowed down a bit.

The big bearded man is out of contract on July 1, and Montreal may be tempted to lure him to the metropolis. Will he agree to play for a club that won’t be aspiring to top honours from 2025-2026?

At his age – and according to Engels, he doesn’t play like a 40-year-old – maybe he’ll want to win a Stanley Cup before hanging up his skates.

In Carolina, he’ll have a better chance. Will the Canes want to offer him another contract? They have close to $27 million available under the salary cap. They’ve got the money, then, even if the club will try to lure a big fish like Mitch Marner to town.

The Canadiens have just over $6 million available under the salary cap. Can’t wait for Carey Price’s contract to expire, can we?

Don’t forget that teams can exceed the cap by 10% during the off-season.

In Overtime

– Breaking news: the Oilers won’t win the Cup in 2026.

– Good luck to her.

– Cale Fleury will stay in Seattle.

– Can’t wait to see this.

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Marc-André Fleury wishes Sidney Crosby farewell

As we all know, there are plenty of rumors surrounding Sidney Crosby and a possible departure from Pittsburgh.

The Penguins franchise figure of the past 20 years isn’t in the best situation, as the team looks to trade veterans. Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell, his two linemates, have been mentioned.

Of course, Crosby has been linked to the Montreal Canadiens, but it’s still unclear whether #87 will leave Pittsburgh or end his career where it all began.

Marc-André Fleury, who was his team-mate for many years with the Pens and the national team, recently discussed the subject in an interview with La Presse Sports.

Fleury wants Crosby to leave Pittsburgh so he can win another Stanley Cup:

That’s a pretty strong comment.

I invite you to read Guillaume Lefrançois’ article on this interview.

“I can’t answer for him, but it sounds like I wish him well. It’s been three years in a row that Pittsburgh has missed the playoffs, and it’s not looking good for next season.” – Marc-André Fleury

Obviously, it won’t be in Pittsburgh that Crosby wins another Stanley Cup before he retires.

We can also deduce that Fleury isn’t the biggest fan of Penguins management right now: Selling his veterans, except Crosby, won’t help him stay.

Could this be part of Kyle Dubas’ strategy to make Crosby more open to a trade and acquire prospects/draft picks?

It’s possible, but it’s not the best message to send for your veteran and the face of your franchise.

Maxime Talbot also added some comments on the subject, but he doesn’t seem too keen to listen to the rumors.

“It’s not unthinkable, but I don’t get involved in rumours. It’s fun for the fans, for the media, to talk about it. But it’s going to come down to what he wants to do.” – Maxime Talbot

As Guillaume Lefrançois mentioned in his text, Talbot and Fleury are in the best position to discuss their former teammate’s situation.

I can’t see Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin expressing an opinion on the subject, as they are still members of the organization.

I can’t wait to see if Crosby changes his address and, more importantly, where he ends up if he does.

Overtime

– He’s certainly an interesting prospect for the Habs.

– What do you think?

– A welcome addition to the Calgary Flames training club.

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The line-up of playoff clubs may have to respect the playoff salary cap

If there’s one thing that has been causing a stir in the playoffs for some years now, it’s the notorious non-existent salary cap.

Just think of the Vegas Golden Knights with Mark Stone, the 2021 edition of the Tampa Bay Lightning with its $18 million over the lot during the playoffs. And now, Evander Kane and the Edmonton Oilers are attracting interest at this level too.

When will the salary cap have to be respected during the spring dance?

According to Elliotte Friedman, it’s coming soon, and in view of the next collective agreement, it could become mandatory for the line-up.

That’s what he said in his most recent appearance on Sportsnet 590, with Matt Marchese and Mike Futa.

Note that this would not be the total salary of all the players in the line-up, but only the 18 players on the ice as well as the two goalkeepers.

We already know that the addition of payroll during the playoffs has already been discussed, but it’s mainly the aspect of players dressed for the game that piques my interest.

It would still give teams something to play for, while being fairer to everyone. Having a long-term injured player shouldn’t benefit you.

Payroll in the playoffs is a very interesting topic, because year after year, it’s one that gets a lot of attention.

At the end of every season, we seem to see players coming back just in time for the playoffs, when they could possibly be ready to return to the game beforehand. But since the salary would count against the mass, the team doesn’t dress it up beforehand to make the most of the space under the mass at the trade deadline.

I can’t wait to see what the new collective agreement brings, as there could be some interesting changes.

Overtime

– Always funny, this kind of video.

– This is truly amazing.

– Here’s one who’s been a major disappointment since his rookie season.

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Second center : The Habs want a long-term player

The Montreal Canadiens need two things for next season: a veteran right-handed blue-liner, but also a true second center.

Surrounding Ivan Demidov on the second line should be a priority for Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton.

Kirby Dach could be a backup plan if the Habs fail to fill this need, but it wouldn’t be ideal.

On the most recent episode of The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro, Eric Engels was on hand to discuss this topic.

According to him, the Habs want a player who would fit in with them to become a permanent winner :

Here’s the excerpt in question:

And it would make sense for the Habs not to add the services of a “decent” player. As long as they’re giving away prospects and/or draft picks, they might as well go after a center in his prime so he can have long-term success with the club.

Speaking of draft picks, Kevin Dubé of TVA Sports wrote an interesting article recently, reporting the words of a scout for an Eastern team.

The latter mentioned thatthere isa sharp drop in the value of prospects in the second half of the first round.

What does this mean for the Habs, who are drafting 16th and 17th?

They need to find a team willing to take risks with two consecutive picks and who need volume, rather than quantity.

And this team must have an interesting option as a second center for the Habs.

The options are starting to drop drastically.

Could the Anaheim Ducks use a breath of fresh air? Trevor Zegras has often been linked with the Habs, but he shouldn’t cost much, considering he’s not living up to expectations.

But why would the Habs want a 24-year-old who’s regressing year after year? Buy cheap in the hope that a change of scenery will help him find his feet.

But if the Habs want a REAL second center for the long term, Mason McTavish is still a more than interesting option (but much more expensive, obviously).

Both first-round picks would be in order, and the Habs have some pretty interesting prospects, as well as the Penguins’ second-round pick (41st).

It won’t be easy to find a quality second center in the long term.

Overtime

– A big man ready for Habs fan madness?Where do we sign?

– Brad Marchand is wearing a Dairy Queen jersey with an Oilers logo marked “Losers”.

– CF Montreal will be without Donadel for next Wednesday’s match.

– Read on.

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Ivan Demidov’s priority this summer: work on his skating stroke

Ivan Demidov came to Montreal as a surprise at the end of last season. His Russian team, SKA, decided to release him before the end of his contract, which was (really) not planned.

This allowed the kid to acclimatize a little to Montreal, but also to the NHL game. He played two games at the end of the regular season, then five playoff games.

And without saying that he “pulled out all the stops”, it was clear that, despite some very promising sequences, he still needed a little time to adapt.

The good news is that Demidov got his first taste of the NHL, and now he knows what it takes. He’ll now spend his summer in town, where he’ll practice in preparation for next season.

And Paul Byron, who works in player development for the Habs, is keeping a close eye on him… and according to Ti-Paul, the young Russian’s priority this summer is to work on his skating stroke.

Even before he was drafted, Demidov’s skating technique was called into question. It’s pretty unorthodox, after all, and one wonders if the Habs aren’t working with him a bit to “correct” it.

It’s also entirely possible that they’re letting him keep his technique and just trying to help him improve, but obviously Demidov wants to improve his skating stroke.

But Byron obviously likes what he’s seen of Demidov so far. He’s praised Demidov’s many qualities (his talent, his hands and his vision, among others), and he’s convinced that Demidov will arrive at camp ready for the season.

And Ti-Paul is convinced that Demidov is going to be “another great player for the fans to watch”.

We know that the kid has a thirst for improvement, and seeing him work on his skating leads me to believe that he’s capable of identifying his “weaknesses” and correcting them. That’s the right attitude for a young player, and I can’t wait to see how he does next season.

And for those who want a taste, maybe we’ll already see an improvement on July 12, when he visits Boisbriand…

Overtime

– Speaking of the wolf.

– Today’s news from the Montreal CF.

– Wow.

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“The Maple Leafs would have given more than $10.9M per year to Sam Bennett”

Last night, Sam Bennett was the talk of Florida. The forward, who was at a festival party yesterday, took to the microphone… and publicly announced that he wasn’t going anywhere.

It’s not completely settled yet, but clearly, the player wants nothing to do with leaving.

So we have to assume, until proven otherwise, that he won’t be leaving the Panthers. This means that the teams who coveted him for July 1 must now look elsewhere… and the Maple Leafs have to be considered.

We know that the Leafs, who will have money to spend with Mitch Marner on his way out, would have liked to repatriate Bennett, who is a little guy from Ontario. And according to Renaud Lavoie, the Leafs were even prepared to offer Bennett a monstrous contract: on BPM Sports this morning, he noted that Toronto would have offered Bennett “more than $10.9 million a year”.

10.9 M per year is the annual salary Mitch Marner received on his contract, which expires in ten days or so.

We know the Leafs have been looking for ways to break out of their playoff slump for years, and in Bennett, who just won the Conn Smythe Trophy after a very big playoff run, he would have added a player with a ton of dog, something the club has lacked in recent years.

That said, the club has been opting for the Core Four recipe for the past few years… and such a pact to Bennett would only recreate that same recipe by changing just one name. Or two, if John Tavares leaves, but you get the point.

It’s also worth remembering that Bennett, despite his 15 goals and 22 points in 23 playoff games, has never collected more than 51 points in a season. He’s celebrating his 29th birthday today, so he’s approaching 30… and the age when players generally start to regress.

And that’s even truer for a player as physical as Bennett.

Giving Bennett more money than Marner, who just doubled the Panthers forward’s points this season, makes it pretty clear that the Leafs would do anything to try and beat their spring demons.

And right now, there are people in Toronto who must really be hoping that negotiations between Bennett and the Panthers turn sour.

Overtime

– Of note.

– Contract buyouts: names to watch.

– Dante Fabbro is not close to a deal with the Blue Jackets. The Habs need to keep a close eye on this.

– Interesting.

– It says a lot about the relationship between the player and the team.

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Hostile offer sheet: forget the idea of Mavrik Bourque signing one this summer

The Dallas Stars have their work cut out for them this summer. After (another) loss in the Western finals, GM Jim Nill has his work cut out for him in terms of reshuffling his roster, which is already tight under the salary cap.

There’s a reason why Jason Robertson is constantly mentioned as a trade target: the Stars are short on cash.

And that was interesting, given that Québécois Mavrik Bourque’s contract expires on July 1. He was eligible to sign a hostile offer sheet, as he was about to become a restricted free agent… and a team could have put the Stars in trouble with a nice offer.

But that’s not going to happen, for one simple reason: the Stars have agreed with Bourque on the terms of a one-year, $950,000 contract.

He will therefore not become a restricted free agent.

More details to come…

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Jets: Jonathan Toews could earn up to $7 million in 2025-2026

This morning, we learned that Jonathan Toews would be making a return to action next season in a Jets uniform. The Manitoba native is coming home… and for the first time in his career, he’ll be wearing a uniform other than that of the Blackhawks.

The Jets have long been linked with the forward, and in 2025-26, it will finally become a reality.

We learned this morning that Toews has signed a one-year contract with a $2 million cap hit. But in reality, it’s a little more complicated than that, because there are some big performance bonuses in the deal.

In fact, the $2 million is the minimum salary Toews will receive, no matter what happens. But if we include all the bonus money, the bill could climb to… $7M.

Nothing less.

Basically, Toews can earn five different bonuses of $550,000 depending on how many games he plays this year. He’ll get one if he plays 20 games, another at 30 games, another at 40 games, another at 50 games and a final one at 60 games.

He’ll get even more money if he plays half the Jets’ games and the Jets make the playoffs (and go a long way). He’ll get $500,000 if he plays 50 games and the Jets make the playoffs, he’ll get $250,000 for every playoff round he wins in which he plays half the games, and he’ll add another million dollars if the Jets win the Stanley Cup and he plays half the games.

He can therefore earn $2.75 million in additional bonuses if he plays 60 games this season, regardless of the result. The other $2.25 million depends on his team’s performance (and the number of games he plays).

On the other hand, this amount is impressive for a player who, after all, hasn’t played in two years and, in his last NHL season, scored just 31 points (in 53 games). He was affected by illness, of course, but his game was in serious decline.

And usually, when a player misses two full seasons, he doesn’t break everything when he comes back.

And with bonuses that don’t depend on his number of points, for example, Toews could theoretically earn $4.75M this year by playing only 60 games, regardless of his impact on the team’s performance.

I can’t wait to see how it all turns out.

In Overtime

– News from Matthew Knies.

– Dan Muse has his assistants.

– New contract: Oilers to respect Connor McDavid’s timing.

– Hiring in the LPHF.