The Montreal Canadiens stayed busy on July 1st as they made a trade with the St.Louis Blues and signed four more players to contracts.
Montreal Canadiens One-Way Deals
Montreal has signed goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen and forward Sammy Blais to one-year, one-way deals. The financial details of the deals were not disclosed. Kahkonen, 28, will be entering his eighth year in the league. He’s spent time with the Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, New Jersey Devils, and Colorado Avalanche. In 140 career games, he’s put up a 49-68-15 record with a 3.34 GAA, .898SV%, and four shutouts. Kahkonen will likely serve as the backup to Samuel Montembeault next season.
Blais, 29, has spent eight years in the NHL as he’s spent time with the St.Louis Blues and New York Rangers. He has 27 goals and 44 assists for 71 points in 257 games. The Montmagny, Quebec native has also had three goals and five assists for eight points in 27 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Blais would win a cup with the Blues in 2019. He will fit in well in the bottom six that the Canadiens have revamped this offseason.
Two-Way Deals
The Canadiens have signed forward Alex Belzile and defenseman Nate Clurman to one-year, two-way contracts. Belzile, 33, returns to the Canadiens organization after spending the last two seasons with the Hartford Wolf Pack. In 127 games with the Wolf Pack, he had 38 goals and 68 assists for 106 points. During his five years with Montreal, he spent the majority of his time in the AHL. In 174 games with Laval, he would put up 54 goals and 76 assists for 130 points. He also saw 44 games with Montreal, where he had six goals and nine assists for 15 points. I would expect him to be a fourth liner who should also see some time down in Laval.
Clurman,27, made his NHL debut last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins after spending the first three years of his career in the AHL and ECHL. In 141 games at the AHL level, he’s put up seven goals and 25 assists for 32 points while spending time with the Colorado Eagles and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He played 62 games with the Utah Grizzlies (ECHL), where he had three goals and 24 assists for 27 points. I would expect him to be a solid veteran presence in Laval, while also possibly seeing a few games in Montreal.
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