With Kirby Dach now under contract, the Montreal Canadiens have narrowed their list of unsigned restricted free agents to two: Zachary Bolduc and Arber Xhekaj. For Bolduc, the real question is whether the next deal comes in the form of a short bridge contract or a longer commitment.
According to Guillaume Lefrançois in La Presse, both paths have already been discussed. One option would be a two-year bridge deal. The other would be a five-year contract, a sign the Canadiens could be weighing how far they want to go on a player who is still settling in.
Bolduc doesn’t sound like someone losing sleep over it. Speaking to La Presse, he said he isn’t worried about the negotiations and expects everything to be sorted out in the coming days or weeks. For now, he’s keeping himself busy in hockey circles, helping friends with their hockey schools and, on Friday, showing up at FlexWork’s camp as a guest and making kids’ day.
That part clearly matters to him. Bolduc said he remembers being a kid himself and meeting NHLers such as Philip Danault and Michael Bournival at his own hockey camps, and how much that meant to him.
On the ice, the Canadiens have reasons to pause before jumping into a long-term number. Bolduc didn’t get many chances on the top power-play unit, had to adjust to a new team and system, and in the playoffs he provided the kind of physical edge the lineup needed. Even so, he finished in a fourth-line wing role.
The production line also gives Montreal something to think about. Bolduc is coming off a season with 12 goals and 18 assists for 30 points. Dach, by comparison, was on a 15-point pace in 37 games before signing a one-year, $3.6 million contract with the team.
Whatever direction the Canadiens choose, Bolduc’s next cap hit should land above that figure. If the team goes bridge, the number could fall in the $4 million to $4.5 million range. If it’s a longer-term agreement, Bolduc may be looking at something closer to the six-year, $5.5 million deal Mavrik Bourque signed with the Nashville Predators, even though Bourque had the stronger offensive season with 41 points in 82 games.
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Mantha was looking for a longer-term commitment, and Montreal never got comfortable enough with the fit to keep pushing. Hughes has made it clear the Canadiens are not interested in forcing a move just to say they were active, and this was another example of that caution shaping the roster, even if it meant letting a recognizable name move on. [Read more 🡒]