Author: Dose

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Michael Hage receives invitation to Junior Team Canada summer camp

Michael Hage didn’t take part in the last World Junior Championship.

And he wasn’t even invited to Canada’s training camp for the tournament…

That said, there’s a good chance we’ll see him defend the Unifolié colors next winter. And today, the Canadiens’ prospect confirmed that he has received an invitation to the Team Canada Junior summer camp.

That doesn’t mean his place on the team is guaranteed.

But it does mean…

But it does mean that, at the moment, the Canadiens are keeping a close eye on him. Which is normal, in a way, since the forward enjoyed a fine 24-25 NCAA season with the University of Michigan.

Hage was perhaps a little “too” young to make the team at the last World Junior Championship.

It is often said, after all, that this is a tournament for 19-year-olds. And Hage celebrated his 19th birthday just a few months ago, on April 14.

Oh, and there’s also the fact that Canadian NCAA players are often shunned by Team Canada…

On the other hand, he could really give himself a chance to play for Canada next winter if he has a great start to the season.

And if he’s able to have some early success in the NCAA campaign… he could even get a pretty important role on the club.

That would be good news, because we know how important the World Junior Championship can be in a young player’s development.

We’re talking about a pretty tough international competition… and the guys who take part are in a position to gain experience for the rest of their respective careers.

Stay tuned.

Overtime

– I wish him all the best.

– It’s going to be a good show.

– Classic.

– With good reason!

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Sean Farrell signs one-year contract with the Habs

Sean Farrell had a difficult first half of the season at 24-25.

But things turned around, and he was one of Laval’s key players towards the end of the campaign.

He finished the season with an interesting 44 points (20 goals) in 67 games.

The Habs rewarded him with a one-year, two-part contract.

Oh, and it’s also worth noting that the Habs have signed defenseman Marc Del Gaizo, a guy who will be able to add depth to Laval’s defensive brigade.

Both players have the same contract:

More details to come…

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Canadiens: prospect Arseni Radkov to play for the Armada in 2025-2026

Last year, the Canadiens drafted Mikus Vecvanags, a goaltender from Europe.

Martin Lapointe had said that the young man would play with the Armada… but he was eventually chosen by the Titan in the European draft. He didn’t start the season in the QMJHL and joined the Titan once the NCAA rules were changed.

The NCAA is waiting for him.

But now, in 2025, the Canadiens have drafted another European goaltender to play for the Armada. We’re talking about Belarusian Arseni Radkov, selected in the third round.

And it’s a little clearer than last year’s situation with Mikus, since the young man was indeed selected in the European draft by the Montreal North Shore club.

Of course, being selected doesn’t mean everything. But both Kevin Dubé (Québecor) and Cédrik Blondin, the club’s match describer, have confirmed his arrival.

So it’s pretty clear.

It should be noted that this will only be for one year. After all, in 2026, Radkov will be heading off to university, so the Armada won’t be counting on him for the long term.

That’s one advantage of the rule change. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come to the QMJHL with a good club just outside Montreal.

But he’s come at the right time, because the Armada, with Justin Carbonneau or not, will be an excellent club this year. The Blainville-Boisbriand team will be fighting for top honours.

It’s worth noting that Radkov looked good today at the development camp. Colleague Marc-Olivier Cook, who saw him in action, noted his mobility in front of the net and his height. He measures 6’4…

overtime

– Here’s one we want to follow.

– He’s popular this week.

– Where will he sign?

– Diamondbacks: season ticket holder banned for interfering too often with the game.[MLB Passion]

– Of note.

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Rafaël Harvey-Pinard leaves for the Penguins

It’s officially over for Rafaël Harvey-Pinard in the Habs organization.

The Québécois has signed a one-year contract with the Penguins. The club announced the news on social networks on the second day of the 2025-2026 autonomy market.

The former Habs star will now have a fresh start.

Details to come…

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The Mammoth was ready to give Brad Marchand $10 million a year

In the weeks leading up to the free agent process, the buzz was that Brad Marchand was in it for the money.

If a team was willing to offer him big money, chances were good the veteran would consider the team in July. That was the vibe for Marchand.

It was his right to choose such an avenue or not.

Signing for $32 million (an amount that had been circulating in his case) in Florida, at age 37, is in keeping with this mentality. Yes, the contract is for six years… but we all know that’s a ruse, since he won’t be playing until he’s 43.

That said, he could have had even more money.

According to Jimmy Murphy, who writes for RG media, the Utah Mammoth was more than willing to bring Marchand to town if he’d wanted to explore that possibility.

In fact, the “new Coyotes” (who spend quite a bit more than the former Arizona club) would have been willing to put up $10M a year, according to a Murphy source.

Over four years, that would have been $40M for the veteran. Yes, the club wants to take it to the next level and potentially offering double the Panthers in terms of salary cap is intense.

Clearly, Marchand is seen as a game-changer for a team. The Maple Leafs, for example, also had Marchand as a priority on their list, according to Chris Johnston.

But Marchand never achieved autonomy. Instead, he stayed with the Panthers, in an environment he’s grown to love over the past few months, to fight for the Stanley Cup once again.

And it’s hard to blame him.

overtime

– Habs management is also on site.

– Interesting.

– We’re keeping an eye on him.

– Why not?

– Nice.

– We love it.

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Canadiens: two biggest needs still unmet

The Canadiens 2025-26 won’t be all that different from the Canadiens 2024-25.

We won’t see Emil Heineman, Joel Armia, Christian Dvorak, David Savard and Michael Pezzetta, but we will welcome Noah Dobson, Zachary Bolduc, Samuel Blais and maybe Alex Belzile.

Kent Hughes mentioned yesterday afternoon that his team was better than a year ago to the day; that the chances of the Habs making the playoffs were going to be better in 2026 (than in 2025).

But let me ask the question of the day: are the Canadiens really a better team than they were a few months ago, when the Capitals ate them alive (especially physically)?

Remember that the Capitals were eliminated in five games against the Hurricanes in the second round, and that the Hurricanes were eliminated in five games against the Panthers in the third round..

We have to admit that, as of July 2, the Habs are no better than they were in April (in the playoffs).

I love the Noah Dobson deal, and yes, it makes Montreal’s defensive brigade one of the best in the Bettman circuit.

However, the organization’s two biggest needs have not been met (yet) this summer.

1. Alex Newhook is still the team’s second center. And if it’s not Newhook, it’ll be Kirby Dach, Jake Evans, Ivan Demidov or Zachary Bolduc. To hear Kent Hughes tell it yesterday, Demidov and Bolduc could be options B or C, if Newhook, Dach and Evans don’t get the job done.

Habs management was unable to improve THE position it needed to improve first. Marc Bergevin kept saying that top-six centers were very difficult to acquire. And he was right.

But as long as the Canadiens can’t count on a true second center, they won’t be a match for the big teams, especially in the playoffs.

He would have solved so many problems.
(Credit: Getty Images)

2. Everyone realized during the playoffs that the Canadiens needed to get bigger and more physical. It lacked grit, toughness and muscle.

But Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton haven’t remedied this problem. Not yet, anyway..

Armia, Dvorak, Pezzetta, Savard and Heineman left, but only Dobson, Bolduc, Blais and Belzile joined the forward line.

In short, Montreal’s forwards didn’t get the muscle they’ll need to compete with the big clubs in the West and the Panthers. Especially under the lousy NHL spring hockey rules..

We’re really going to have to find a regular role for Arber Xhekaj, to back up Josh Anderson’s strength.

Yes, Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton have made some good trades (and signings) in recent days, but the team’s biggest needs haven’t been met.

And the group will also lack experience on the nights when things get tough.

The summer of 2025 was supposed to be the most important for the Hughes – Gorton duo in Montreal. For the time being, we can’t say that the two men have worked everything out.

All this confirms one thing: yes, the rebuilding process has moved forward in Montreal, but it’s far from over yet. There’s every reason to believe that the Habs will experience a season similar to their last in 2025-26.

The 2nd center and the grit may not be added until 2026-27. And that’s no big deal, as long as we know and accept it. Fans shouldn’t have unrealistic expectations of their club next season.

The fun part (for real), though, is that there will be more French-speaking Québécois in the line-up. Zachary Bolduc and Samuel Blais (and maybe Alex Belzile) will give their all for the bleu blanc rouge.

And Maritime native Noah Dobson knows exactly what it means to play for the Canadiens.

Extension

With Christian Dvorak and Joel Armia choosing to pursue their careers away from Montreal, Martin St-Louis will also have to change his line-up when he runs out of one man.

Josh Anderson and Jake Evans will continue to be used on the PK, but who will be the other two regular forwards? Nick Suzuki and Samuel Blais? Brendan Gallagher and Kirby Dach? Alex Newhook and Oliver Kapanen?

Unless we have a snappy, physical forward on the verge of joining the Habs?

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“I’m convinced Joshua Roy is on the trading block”

Jasons for the Canadiens’ youngsters / prospects.

The Canadiens were able to get Zachary Bolduc: that’s the #1 reason why Logan Mailloux hasn’t been with the Canadiens for about 24 hours.

Without Bolduc, the Habs wouldn’t have given Mailloux away. The defenseman wasn’t available for peanuts.

But the fact remains that it takes more than Mailloux’s “faulty vision” to trade a rugged offensive defenseman of his stature , right?

We know that the Canadiens weren’t in love with Logan Mailloux and that, at the right price, he could leave. And that’s what happened.

And now we have to wonder whether Bolduc’s arrival on a top-9 team will open doors for Joshua Roy, who sometimes opens doors for himself at the base of the Canadiens organization.

According to Anthony Marcotte, who knows Roy’s game well on the heels of his duties with the Canadiens and the Rocket, we shouldn’t be surprised if Roy were to be traded as well.

I see less and less of a happy ending for Joshua Roy in Montreal. And right now, I’m convinced he’s on the trade market.

If we’re able to pass him on in a transaction, I’m convinced we’ll do it. – Anthony Marcotte, on BPM Sports

BPM Sports’ Rocket play-by-play man believes that Roy hasn’t been able to take Laval to the next level this year. This has worked against him.

This year, he’s gone backwards in the minds of a lot of people in Montreal. As early as practice camp, he began to disappoint.

Those who follow what colleague Maxime Truman does on his various platforms are not surprised by such revelations. But let’s just say that it seems clear that, like Mailloux, the Habs will try to get Joshua Roy out of their organization.

Remember that both are Marc Bergevin’s picks in the 2021 draft.

overtime

– Strange no-trade clause for Evgenii Dadonov in New Jersey.

– Davis Alexander: it doesn’t look good. [BPM Sports]

– Anthony Mantha to Pittsburgh.

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Marc-Édouard Vlasic and Frédérique Guay are expecting a child

Great news on this Wednesday morning.

Frédérique Guay and Marc-Édouard Vlasic are expecting a child. That’s what the woman we knew on TVA Sports announced in the last few hours on Instagram.

She posted a photo tagging “couple project” and identifying Vlasic.

This will be the first child for the couple, who have been living in California for the past few years due to Vlasic’s many years with the Sharks.

When they moved together, it was inevitably to San Jose.

The defenseman is no longer in San Jose, having recently been bought out by the California outfit. No word yet on whether the free agent will sign elsewhere or retire.

There aren’t many rumours about the man who has slowed down on the ice in recent years.

Frédérique Guay has already announced in an interview that the couple intend to move to Quebec the day Vlasic’s playing career is over.

One has to wonder whether Vlasic will be more tempted to retire now that he’s expecting a child, or whether playing (at least) one last year is something that appeals to him.

After all, it’s now or never, since he won’t be able to come out of retirement in five years, just for the fun of it.

It’s worth noting that, for the moment, the defender’s name hasn’t really been circulated publicly. We’ll see later in the off-season what his decision is, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the end. And if it is, he’ll have had a great career.

overtime

– It’s crazy to see him stay in Vancouver.

– Coming up.

– Interesting.

– Read more.

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Zachary Bolduc’s father interviewed wearing a #76 Canadiens jersey

This morning, Anthony Marcotte and Anthony Desaulniers interviewed Zachary’s father, Richard Bolduc, on BPM Sports.

As you can imagine, the father of the Canadiens’ newest player was thrilled to see his son return home to play for his childhood team.

You can listen to the result by clicking here, for those interested.

Right at the start of the interview, Anthony Marcotte announced that Zachary’s father was wearing a Canadiens jersey with the #76. That’s the number his son wore in St. Louis.

Of course, we know that #76 in Montreal is identified with P.K. Subban.

That said, since the number hasn’t been retired, there’s nothing to stop the Canadiens’ new forward from taking it if he wants to. And on that subject, the question was put to his father: do you wear your son’s jersey or Subban’s?

The answer is Subban. But Richard Bolduc said that, even if he wasn’t allowed to say so, he had a good idea of which number his son would choose.

Note that Bolduc wore #15 (not available in Montreal) with the Océanic and Remparts, but had #76 in Saint-Louis. I have a feeling that his Richard Bolduc didn’t wear his #76 jersey by chance…

For those who want to listen to the interview, we also hear the father, who often repeats how happy (and rightly so) he is with the situation, mention that the Habs pushed quite hard to get Bolduc.

The Blues offered other players, but the Canadiens wanted Bolduc. And since the Blues needed to rebalance the forces between forward and defense, Doug Armstrong said yes.

Richard Bolduc knows what his son is getting into, for better or for worse, but he’s happy.

overtime

– Julien BriseBois strikes.

– Nice contract.

– Ahh, the Pitlick…

– Paul Skenes: too strong for a team that doesn’t deserve it. [MLB Passion]

– Another signing to note.

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The big question is whether Ivan Demidov is best surrounded by

It’s been a busy few days, hasn’t it?

Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton (as well as quite a few people at the Canadiens, in fact) have been hard at work laying the foundations for what the Canadiens of 2025-2026 will look like.

The goal? Get back to the playoffs.

It all started, of course, with the Noah Dobson deal last week. The Canadiens’ GM gave away his first two picks in 2025 along with Emil Heineman to get the defenseman, who signed a lucrative $76 million contract extension in the process.

It continued with nine new prospects, including the very talented Alexander Zharovsky, joining the Montreal organization on the heels of the second day of the draft.

What’s next? Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Xavier Simoneau, Gustav Lindström (who was leaving for Europe anyway) and Noel Hoefenmayer did not receive a qualifying offer, unlike Cayden Primeau and a few other prospects.

But it took a few hours before the goalkeeper was sent to Carolina.

Brandon Gignac (Europe), Alex Barré-Boulet, Connor Hughes (Europe), David Savard (retirement), Joel Armia (Los Angeles), Christian Dvorak (Philadelphia) and Michael Pezzetta (Toronto) became free agents.

Then came the second major coup of the last few days: Québécois Zachary Bolduc came to town in exchange for Logan Mailloux.

The Habs have also acquired Samuel Blais, Kaapo Kahkonen, Alex Belzile and Nate Clurman on the free agent market. These are players who will have to fight for their place in the NHL.

And the Rocket have signed Tobie Paquette-Bisson and Wyatte Wylie.

Obviously, there’s still time for Kent Hughes to improve his team. But right now, we have to ask ourselves: have the off-season objectives been achieved?

Many of them were, yes.

1. The Canadiens have improved in front of the net. Kaapo Kahkonen will be able to back up Jacob Fowler if he plays in Laval, and he’ll be able to challenge Jakub Dobes for an NHL spot – or replace him adequately in the event of injury or poor performance, for example.

Ultimately, having him replace Cayden Primeau in the organization chart is a plus.

2. As our colleague Maxime Truman said, expect to see several forwards come to town. And clearly, that’s what’s happened, as it took guys to fill jerseys in both Montreal and Laval.

The club has more depth than it did before the free-agent market opened.

3. The Canadiens have improved their defense (and powerplay) via Dobson. Lane Hutson, Noah Dobson, Mike Matheson, Kaiden Guhle, Alexandre Carrier, Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble are likely to start the season in the NHL, if nothing changes.

And although Logan Mailloux has left for St. Louis, David Reinbacher is still here. There are other prospects, but Reinbacher is the biggest name on the club’s blue line.

But you know as well as I do that THE big issue of the summer was the second center position. And as of today, the Canadiens are in a worse position than they were on Monday. #ChristianDvorak’sDeparture

Right now, only four center players are guaranteed to start the year in Montreal – if you take injuries and potential trades out of the equation, of course:

  • Nick Suzuki
  • Kirby Dach
  • Alex Newhook
  • Jake Evans

Yes, guys like Oliver Kapanen (who played in Montreal late in the season) and Owen Beck (who got his chance during the season), to name but a few, will be in the mix for a spot in town.

But is there a real second center in the mix?

Until proven otherwise, it’s between Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook that it’s going to come down to second center. Ivan Demidov and Zachary Bolduc are not currently centers.

And even if Kent Hughes says he’s “ready to start with what he’s got” at center, I’m sure the GM isn’t the most comfortable of men with the idea of having Dach or Newhook be mandatory on a top-6 – so possibly with Ivan Demidov.

Does the GM want to give Dach another chance? Does he want to see Newhook go to the next level? I think he does.

But there’s a fine line between giving them a chance to prove themselves and not challenging them by bringing a top-notch center to the club. This could be the last big job of the summer.

Will it happen in the next few months? If so, will it be this summer, at camp or during the season? Time will tell.

If the season were to start today, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky would be playing with Nick Suzuki, although nothing is set in stone.

We can also assume that Ivan Demidov would be on the top-6 alongside… er…

In addition to the center position we’ve been talking about, it’s very possible that Zachary Bolduc, and not a guy like Patrik Laine, will start the season with Ivan Demidov on the second line.

Could Laine go play on a bottom-6 with Brendan Gallagher, Josh Anderson as well as Samuel Blais-like players fighting for a spot on the club? Possibly.

Bolduc played on a first line and a first wave powerplay in St. Louis at the end of the year. Is he the big addition for Ivan Demidov? Possibly, yes.

But will it be enough, if so, to adequately surround Demidov? Is it better to have Zachary Bolduc than Jordan Kyrou, who has often been linked with the Habs recently? Time will give us answers we can’t get right now. But Bolduc is a massive addition.

We know that surrounding the Russian, who has the potential to become the Canadiens’ best player and dominate the top line for years to come, is a priority in town.

Let’s not forget that, several weeks ago, Jeff Gorton said that the top-6 could be strengthened through the wings, given the state of the center market. Demidov may have seen his bosses give him his winger in Bolduc. So he may be better served than he was 24 hours ago.

But the fact remains that at center, there are still questions to be asked. That hasn’t changed… even if Bolduc could become a key player in the Canadiens’ future.

extension

– The Canadiens want to make the playoffs in 2026. But we’ve seen that even if the club has never been as improved as it has been in the last few days since the change in management, the long term still prevails.

Management doesn’t want to turn corners by going after contracts that don’t fit with the plan. It’s perfect!

– Zachary Bolduc and Logan Mailloux are first-round picks in 2021. The Habs traded the guy who plays a premium position for a winger, but still had the edge according to many.

Kent Hughes will now have to hope that the Blues, who wanted to draft Mailloux in 2021 but didn’t due to circumstances, don’t see the American club win the deal. A defenseman takes a long time to develop…

– The Canadiens managed not to give away Logan Mailloux or David Reinbacher to get Noah Dobson, but it took the Ontario defenseman to get Zachary Bolduc out of St. Louis.

Another first-round pick of the Marc Bergevin era leaves the Canadiens. Only two players drafted in the first round by the former administration are still in town: Cole Caufield (2019) and Kaiden Guhle (2020), both signed long-term by HuGo.

– It’s no surprise that Kent Hughes didn’t announce a contract extension for Lane Hutson yesterday. It’s safe to assume that negotiations are ongoing.

There’s no rush, but…

– Joel Armia and Christian Dvorak were too expensive for the Canadiens and have left. That’s going to change the dynamic on the last two lines, both down low and in terms of the presence of veterans in the room.

With David Savard, that’s three big veteran departures. We mustn’t neglect this aspect, as the Habs are still very young.

– Carey Price’s contract hasn’t been traded (yet?). If it has to be done (I think it will be before October), we can assume it will be in September, once his final signing bonus has been paid.

But I’m sure Kent Hughes is already on the case. He could have a gentleman’s agreement before September, you know.