The Montreal Canadiens can cross Calle Jarnkrok off the list.
For a while, there was some chatter about the veteran forward landing in Montreal, but that path is now closed. Jarnkrok has made his call, and it sends him back to Sweden rather than to the Canadiens.
The former Toronto Maple Leafs forward signed a three-year contract with Brynas IF, the club he played for before his NHL career took off. The move brings the 34-year-old center back to Gavle, where his hockey journey started before he spent 13 seasons in the NHL.
His new deal keeps him with the Swedish club through the end of the 2028-29 season, officially ending his North American run.
For Kent Hughes, that means one less experienced name off the board. Montreal had been linked to Jarnkrok in speculation, but the Canadiens will have to look elsewhere if they want to add another veteran piece.
There are still plenty of recognizable free agents sitting unsigned. Vladimir Tarasenko, David Perron, Evander Kane and Patrik Laine remain on the market, while defensemen John Klingberg and Jeff Petry are still available too. In goal, Petr Mrazek and Cam Talbot are among the names waiting for a landing spot.
So far, Montreal has stayed fairly quiet since free agency opened, sticking to smaller moves instead of the bigger swing many fans expected. And if the market keeps moving slowly, Jarnkrok may not be the last veteran to decide that Europe is the better option.
In Other News...
Kirby Dach Has Everything To Prove At Canadiens Camp
Kirby Dach arrives at Canadiens camp with more hanging over him than the usual start-of-season pressure. Montreal has not made the kind of roster moves that would push the spotlight elsewhere, so his camp and early-season work is set to be one of the teams biggest storylines. The 24-year-old still has the talent that made him such an intriguing part of the Canadiens plans, but the conversation around him has shifted from upside to whether he can stay on the ice and put together something closer to a full, reliable season.
For Dach, this is the kind of year that can reshape a future in Montreal or elsewhere. The Canadiens need clarity as much as he does, because his ability to play with consistency and handle the physical demands of the season will help define the clubs forward picture. If he can put the injury questions behind him and settle into the role the team envisioned, he changes the tone around camp quickly. If not, the uncertainty around his place in the organization only gets louder. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Former First Round Pick Facing A Huge Season
Filip Mesar has reached a point in his Canadiens career where patience and progress are starting to meet in the middle. The 22-year-old first-round pick has spent the past two seasons with the Laval Rocket, putting up modest production while working to establish himself in the pro game, and he still has not made his NHL debut.
The coming 2026-27 season looms as a major one for his development because it is the final year of his entry-level contract. Mesar still has age on his side and time to improve, but another quiet year in Laval would only sharpen the questions about where he fits in Montreals long-term plans. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Just Took A Chance On A Prospect At A Crossroads
A fresh look at Sam Poulin comes with the familiar appeal of a player who still feels like he has more to show. Montreal added the former first-round pick after a career spent mostly in the AHL, where he put up solid numbers in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Bakersfield and kept working toward a longer NHL opportunity. For a Canadiens team always balancing immediate depth with the longer view, Poulin is the sort of low-risk swing that can make sense if the right fit is there.
Poulins path has already included a notable stop in Edmonton after a trade in December 2025, adding another layer to a career that has never quite settled into one lane. He has only a handful of NHL appearances to his name, which is part of why this Montreal contract matters as much as it does, even if the real question remains the same as it was in Pittsburgh and Edmonton: whether the Canadiens are getting him at the moment he is ready to turn all that minor-league production into something more at the top level. [Read more 🡒]