Author: Dose

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Lane Hutson seems to have grown in stature over the summer

Sometimes a photo can be misleading. The adage a picture is worth a thousand words is not valid in 100% of situations.

Remember Alex Ovechkin in the summer, the handshake between Carey Price and Andrei Vasilevskiy? No, Vasilevskiy wasn’t three times bigger (or better equipped) than Carey Price. It was all in the angle from which the photo was taken..

(Credit: Getty Images)

So please, remember this caveat when you read the next few lines.

But hey… a photo captured at Bauer Hockey’s most recent event – taken by Zach Murmanfreer and reprinted by William Nadeau among others – has a lot to encourage us for the Canadiens’ upcoming campaign. And why? Because Lane Hutson obviously listened to and followed the advice of Montreal’s physical trainers, and spent the summer in the gym.

No, Hutson hasn’t become Arber Xhekaj, but you can see in the photo above that he looks taller/costumed than Cole Caufield, while getting closer to Nick Suzuki’s physiognomy.

Last year at camp, Hutson was listed at 5’10 and 162 pounds.

I don’t think he’s grown any bigger (even if his growth has been stunted by a particular medical condition), but I do think he’s passed the 170-pound mark. Maybe even 175..

We’ll find out in September, at the next practice camp.

No, Hutson will never become a monster on the ice. He’d be less agile anyway..

But the fact that he has (presumably) put on muscle since his team’s elimination has to be seen as a very positive thing.

But be careful! Remember the Price – Vasilevskiy photo; a picture can be deceiving. So let’s wait until we have several of them – or until we come across recent videos of Hutson – before getting too excited. Except that we can/should be encouraged.

Overtime

– Prince Owusu has rediscovered his attacking touch.

– Another defeat for Montreal CF, but at least there’s a bit of a positive.

– MLB: the Red Sox are on a roll.

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Gerard Gallant in the KHL: another QMJHL alumnus heading for Russia

Gerard Gallant has been unable to find a job to his liking in the NHL since being fired by the New York Rangers after his club’s 2022-2023 season.

He had been linked to the Canadiens as an assistant, but this had been denied.

But now, according to Pierre LeBrun, the career coach has found a new challenge: the KHL. The coach will be heading to Russia for the rest of his career.

Interesting!

Clearly, this means that once again this summer, nothing was to his liking in the NHL. And now, he’s had enough and wants to go manage somewhere. That’s my reading of the situation, anyway.

You’d think his new team would be proud of the move… and you’d think they’d followed a certain trend: hiring a coach who cut his teeth in the QMJHL.

Because right now, there are four QMJHLers working in the second-best league in the world.

  • Benoît Groulx: Traktor
  • Guy Boucher: Avangard
  • Bob Hartley: Lokomotiv
  • Gerard Gallant

There are four Canadian head coaches in the KHL. Two are Québécois, three are French-speaking… and all four cut their teeth in the QMJHL.

There’s a trend, isn’t there?

extension

And let’s not forget that Louis Robitaille recently left the Cape Breton Eagles. It wasn’t for a head coaching position in Russia, but to manage in the VHL, the level below the KHL.

Once again, a Russian club has recently made a move here.

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In 2018, Jeff Gorton didn’t draft Joe Veleno (who was released two rows later)

In 2018, Jeff Gorton was GM of the New York Rangers. And Nick Bobrov was also in the organization, by the way.

Drafted 28th, his club had a say in the draft. And after selecting Vitali Kravtsov ninth and K’Andre Miller 22nd, Gorton chose Nils Lundkvist.

Only one of the three selections made sense. #Miller

It’s interesting to bring this back today, in hindsight. Why? Because Joe Veleno went out at #30 (to the Red Wings), two spots after Lundkvist’s pick.

And yesterday, Jeff Gorton’s new club, the Canadiens, signed Veleno to a one-year contract.

Gorton would have had two real chances to draft Veleno (22nd and 28th… since we’re not going to count the pick in the top-10), but he didn’t. Arpon Basu (The Athletic) made the point in a paper on Veleno.

And as Basu points out, Jeff Gorton is the first to say that a first-round pick often has as many lives as a cat. He talked about this on the Basu and Godin podcast.

Please note: no one is saying that Gorton didn’t like Veleno.

The only thing we can conclude in connection with the player who had the status of outstanding player in the QMJHL is that he probably wasn’t at the top of the Rangers’ list rendered at #28 and based on the first 27 picks.

But we don’t know where he was on the list. He may have been the second name on the list, for all we know.

Note that Chris Drury, who replaced Gorton as Rangers head coach, traded Lundkvist to the Stars a few months after Gorton’s departure. And for what it’s worth, Marc Bergevin’s Canadiens drafted Jesse Ylönen (35) and Alexander Romanov (38) early in the second round.

overtime

– Of course.

– Yup…

– He’s well ranked.

– Where will he go?

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45 points for Joe Veleno: “realistic” in the eyes of Pierre McGuire

The Canadiens’ center line continues to be the talk of the town.

We know that Nick Suzuki will be the first center. We suspect that Jake Evans will be the fourth center. We assume Joe Veleno will play center. We think Alex Newhook and Kirby Dach will fight for the second center spot.

We know that Zachary Bolduc is preparing to take on center responsibilities.

Zack Bolduc on his role with the Habs:

“I was told to practice my faceoffs. I don’t know if that’s to play center or just to take faceoffs on the left side. But I’m gonna work hard to be ready for camp & to have the mentality of a winger but also someone who can play center.”

[image or embed]

– /r/Habs(@habsonreddit.bsky.social) July 16, 2025 at 9:14 PM

Obviously, bringing Veleno to Montreal means the Canadiens have more options, now. But the options I’m talking about aren’t on the top-6, in my eyes.

In his career, Veleno has never scored more than 28 points in an NHL season. Last year, he scored 17 points and was bought out in his second trade in a few months.

(Credit: Hockey DB)

Does the youngster have the talent to improve? Yes.

But will he become one of the organization’s best players overnight? Let’s just say that there are a few doubts about the Québécois.

I say this because Tony Marinaro (on the Sick Podcast) asked Pierre McGuire if Veleno could become a 50-point, 50% face-off guy.

Veleno is at 46% in terms of face-offs. 50% is a good gap, though.

McGuire’s response is that 50 points is too much. But if Veleno is used in the right way to produce, he doesn’t rule out seeing him get between 40 and 45 points this season. He thinks that’s realistic.

You can listen to his passage – and Marinaro’s interview with Veleno – in today’s Sick Podcast.

Does Veleno have the talent to pull it off? On paper, yes. But there’s a reason he’s in his fourth organization in 2025: he’s never lived up to the expectations placed on him.

And to say something like that, of course, raises expectations in some people.

To put things in perspective, with 40 or 45 points, Veleno would have been the Habs’ fifth-highest scorer last year. The guys on the first line and Lane Hutson all had more than 50 points, and Brendan Gallagher was at 39.

I don’t see how that’s realistic. But if it happens, no one in town is going to complain.

overtime

– That’s right.

– Logical.

– Good question.

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Joe Veleno says he had no offer from the Canadiens on July 1

Yesterday, the Canadiens announced that Joe Veleno had been contracted for the 2025-2026 season. He’ll earn around $900,000, so it’s not a huge risk.

It’s not like when the Habs got hold of Kirby Dach or Alex Newhook: it’s not necessarily a project for the Canadiens’ management. He’s a player who’s coming to town to add depth at center (on the bottom-6) among the guys who shoot from the left.

And he’s also a former client of Kent Hughes at Quartexx.

Kent Hughes when he sees a Quartexx client without an NHL contract

[image or embed]

– /r/Habs(@habsonreddit.bsky.social) July 16, 2025 at 8:22 PM

We know that Veleno’s name had been floating around town since the free agent market opened. On July 1, there were rumours that he had an offer on the table from the Canadiens.

But according to the principal interested party, this was not the case.

He said so yesterday in response to a question on the subject from Tony Marinaro (Sick Podcast), who detailed the chronology of events as he put a question to the new member of the Canadiens, who confirmed his information. So it wasn’t the player who brought the subject up.

And the former Red Wings and Blackhawks player said that on July 1, he had no offer from the Canadiens. There were discussions, however.

Veleno also mentions that there was a time when negotiations stopped with the Habs. But they resumed in the last few days and an offer was finally tabled.

Other teams were also in the running for the man who should keep number 90 in Montreal.

Not everyone in the organization was convinced that Veleno was the right player, but the Québécois is now under contract with the Habs. Will he prove those who believed in him right?

To be seen in the coming months.

overtime

– Good listening.

– Danny Maciocia talks about his quarterback. [BPM Sports]

– Of note.

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– Antoine Roussel believes in Joe Veleno. [98.5 Sports]

– Logical.

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Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl played in a garage league in Ontario

There are all sorts of ways to prepare for an NHL season. Some more traditional than others. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl chose to stand out from the crowd and spend their Wednesday night playing hockey in a garage league in Newmarket, Ontario.

We know McDavid hails from Richmond Hill, just a few miles from the arena, but still, it’s pretty special to see him play in this setting.

It’s even more special for Leon Draisaitl, who obviously decided to spend part of his summer with his captain in Edmonton.

After one period, things didn’t look good for McDavid’s team, who trailed 4-0. The final result was not known at the time of writing.

The comments below the post are very funny. Some humorously suggest that it’s Stuart Skinner in front of the net, while others have written that both Oilers players have their Stanley Cup Final form.

One thing’s for sure, it’s pretty special to find both players in such a league. You never know what kind of injury might suddenly occur in such a context.

In any case, for Oilers fans, it’s great to see the two star players spending part of the summer together. The problem in their case is the team-mates, who can’t string together 4 consecutive series playing good hockey.

General manager Stan Bowman is going to have to find a better goalie for his team. Stuart Skinner just isn’t getting the job done. The problem is, there doesn’t seem to be any imminent transaction.

Overtime

– New episode.

– He loved the experience.

– Another loss.

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Best forwards under 25: Cole Caufield ranked 5th, according to NHL website

Cole Caufield has just completed a second consecutive season without missing a game through injury. This consistency enabled him to take off and enjoy the best campaign of his career, with 37 goals and 70 points in 82 games.

In the playoffs, he showed he was capable of contributing with three goals in five games.

It was enough for the experts at NHL.com to rank him as the 5th best forward under 25 in the NHL.

At the top are Tim Stutzle, Jack Hughes, Matt Boldy and Wyatt Johnston.

When you look at the impact these players have had, it’s hard to rank Caufield ahead of them.

What’s a little more surprising is that Caufield is ahead of Matthew Knies and Macklin Celebrini, among others. Matvei Michkov is also behind.

It may seem surprising, but Caufield has the statistics to prove the experts on the NHL website right, despite some of his detractors.

As much as we in Montreal can get carried away with certain players, we too often underestimate them.

The reality is that Caufield plays on a good first line in the NHL and is close to 40 goals.

Will Macklin Celebrini surpass this season? Perhaps, but in the meantime, Caufield fully deserves his place in this ranking.

Matthew Knies is another strong candidate to overtake Caufield this year, but he’s only managed 58 points this season. His playoff run may influence his view, but in the end, the Habs’ diminutive forward was better in 2024-2025.

I even think Caufield can hit 40 goals this season if Juraj Slafkovsky starts the season on time.

Overtime

– CF MTL still in hot water.

– He’s very excited.

– Expectations are higher than at the start of the season.

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Habs schedule: the battle for #2 goalie will be bigger than ever

Earlier today, the Habs schedule for the 2025-26 season was unveiled. In a humorous capsule, Kent Hughes, Jeff Gorton and Patrick Chèvrefils unveiled it all.

For those who want to see it at a glance, here’s what it looks like:

One of the most interesting things about this schedule is that, due to the long break for the Olympics, the calendar is quite condensed. In fact, the Habs will play back-to-back games 16 times this season.

That’s a record (tied with a few other teams) in the NHL… and it has major implications for the team.

The most important of these is in front of the net. The vast majority of the time, when a team plays two games in two nights, the second goaltender gets a start in one of those two games.

This means that the battle for the #2 goaltender position (between Jakub Dobes and Kaapo Kahkönen) will be more important than ever. Because this year, the pressure on the #2 goalkeeper’s shoulders will be high… and it will come very quickly.

From the very first month of the season, the club will be playing two back-to-back games, so goalie #2 will have to be ready to contribute quickly. And that’s just a taste of what’s in store for the Habs before Christmas.

Between November 26 and December 23, the Habs will play 16 games in 28 days. And between November 28th and December 7th, the CH will only play back-to-back games.

Last year, for example, the Habs only had 12 back-to-backs on their schedule. As a result, the club will have to manage a much tighter schedule, and put even more trust in its #2 goaltender.

Reducing Samuel Montembeault’s workload was already one of the team’s objectives, and this schedule makes it even more important to achieve it.

We saw in 2024-25 that, on occasion, the Canadiens were prepared to give Monty two starts in 24 hours. That said, this was often done when the team was playing extremely important games and confidence in the #2 goaltender (be it Cayden Primeau or Jakub Dobes) wasn’t huge.

But this year, the Habs(who have a better line-up than last year) won’t be able to afford not to trust their #2 goalie. And all this makes you wonder if it’s all in favor of the veteran Kahkönen, because we know that it’s usually easier to trust a veteran than a youngster.

One thing’s for sure, though: both Dobes and Kahkönen will have to arrive at camp with the knife between their teeth. And whoever wins that competition is likely to be a busy man this season…

Overtime

– Don’t hesitate to ask your questions!

– Here are all of Joe Veleno’s goals in 2024-25.

– What do you think?

– Of note.

– Very cool.

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Here’s what the Canadiens’ line-up looks like as of today

The Canadiens turned a corner in 2024-25. The club, hoping to be in the mix, was finally in the playoffs… and the young core of the group showed some great things.

Lane Hutson winning the Calder Trophy, Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield reaching another level, Ivan Demidov coming to town at the end of the year: a number of youngsters shone this season.

So we knew the Habs would have a big summer to consolidate all this. Noah Dobson, Zachary Bolduc and Joe Veleno were the big acquisitions in town, while guys like Emil Heineman, Joel Armia, Christian Dvorak and David Savard left. Logan Mailloux also left, but he wasn’t a regular in the NHL.

All of which means that the Habs of 2025-26, while not perfect, are likely to be a better team than last year.

Dom Luszczyszyn, of The Athletic, is among those who see a huge improvement: in fact, according to him, only the Sharks are a more improved team than the Habs since the start of the summer.

But how much better is this group? Let’s take a look at what the Canadiens of 2025-26 might look like, starting with the forwards:

Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Juraj Slafkovský

Zachary Bolduc – Kirby Dach – Ivan Demidov

Patrik Laine – Jake Evans – Alex Newhook

Josh Anderson – Joe Veleno – Brendan Gallagher

Extra : Samuel Blais

The first line-up, barring a huge surprise, will be intact. The three guys are connecting more and more on the ice, and at the end of the season last year, they formed one of the best trios in the NHL. I don’t see that changing.

Seeing Zachary Bolduc work on his face-offs leads me to believe that the plan is to pair him with Kirby Dach so that they each take face-offs on their strong side. Both guys are capable of playing physical and have offensive talent: they’ll help Ivan Demidov acclimatize to the NHL.

Patrik Laine, in a reduced 5-on-5 role, will be in a chair more suited to him. If he comes to camp strong, he could mix things up, but putting him on the wing of a responsible guy like Jake Evans and a speedy winger like Alex Newhook might help him look good at 5-on-5.

Josh Anderson and Brendan Gallagher find themselves in support roles, and Joe Veleno (who will be the team’s only left-handed center) will try to make up for the loss of Christian Dvorak. It won’t be easy, especially in the face-off circle, but it could still work.

On the blue line, here’s what I’m expecting:

Kaiden Guhle – Noah Dobson

Jayden Struble – Lane Hutson

Mike Matheson – Alexandre Carrier

Extra: Arber Xhekaj

In my opinion, pairing Noah Dobson and Lane Hutson is not the best way to bring out the best in these two guys. The two need to be separated to spread the strike force over different duos, but also to keep their defensive deficiencies from being too exposed.

Guhle and Dobson are two guys who can eat up minutes by the ton, and at 5-on-5, I’d expect them to be the most-used pair. This would allow Hutson to focus on the powerplay and offensive zone face-offs, and Jayden Struble showed he has great chemistry with Hutson last year.

As for Mike Matheson and Alexandre Carrier, they had the task of handling the defensive duels last year, and they didn’t do a bad job of it. Having the Guhle-Dobson duo will take some of the pressure off their shoulders, so it’ll give Martin St-Louis a solid veteran duo to send into the fray for defensive duties without having to overwork them.

And in front of the net, Samuel Montembeault will obviously be the team’s #1 goalie. It remains to be seen whether Jakub Dobes or Kaapo Kahkönen will be his assistant now.

The Habs aren’t a perfect team, but when you look at the team’s roster, there’s plenty to convince you that this group is built to last. And if not this year (because there’s a world in which the Habs won’t make the playoffs in 2025-26), then in the years to come.

Overtime

– That’s right. He’s not going to go public with it, you know.

– Attention all interested parties.

– News from Alexander Zharovsky.

– Love it.

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Noah Dobson: the Habs welcomed him to Montreal in style

It’s been almost three weeks since Noah Dobson was traded to Montreal. The Islanders defenseman, who wanted to join the Canadiens, arrived in town (with an eight-year, $9.5-million-a-year contract in his pocket) in exchange for two first-round picks and Emil Heineman.

It’s a big coup for the Habs, who, in Jeff Gorton’s eyes, have made an acquisition on the scale of Artemi Panarin’s with the Rangers a few years ago.

And clearly, in Montreal, the defenseman will fill a big need. The club was looking for a top-notch right-handed defenseman, and in Dobson, they get a player who fits the bill.

The Habs made sure to welcome him to town in style, preparing several gifts for Dobson and his wife, who were waiting for them when they arrived in Montreal.

The defenseman’s wife, Alexa Dobson, shared a few photos.

We also note that she took care to thank the organization in French with a “merci beaucoup” rather than a “thank you”. That’s a nice touch.

We know that the Canadiens have a good reputation in this area throughout the league, and for a first-rate player like Dobson, I like to see the team go all out to make sure he gets a nice welcome when he arrives in town.

Because that’s also how you build a reputation, after all: players take note of these little gestures, and it makes noise throughout the league afterwards.

Of course, the most important thing now will be to see what the defenseman can do on the ice. He’ll be a player to watch at the team’s next training camp, because right now, he’s one of the biggest pieces of the Habs’ core.

And the club has made sure to welcome him at the height of all that. Well done.

Overtime

– He, too, will be eagerly awaited at camp.

– Attention all interested parties.

– Too bad.

– It’s not ideal for the tournament.