Kent Hughes and the Canadiens may be on the verge of making one of the club’s biggest announcements of the summer, and it could happen in a setting as low-key as their golf tournament.
According to Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette, a contract extension for Martin St-Louis is all but done. Cowan said the news could even be unveiled at the team event.
"I think it's just a formality; maybe they announce it at the golf tournament."
St-Louis is heading into the final year of his current deal, but the expectation is that Montreal will have him signed long before training camp opens. A four-year extension would fit cleanly with the five-year deals already given to Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes.
The case for the move is pretty straightforward. St-Louis has already guided the Canadiens to 106 points and a trip to the conference final last season. He has also become one of the NHL’s longest-serving head coaches, a sign of the stability Montreal has been building around him.
With training camp only a few weeks away, the timing matters. The Canadiens haven’t had expectations this high in a long time, and locking up St-Louis now would send a clear message that the organization sees its core structure as complete.
It would also avoid the unusual scenario of an NHL head coach starting a season on an expiring contract, something that rarely happens. For now, the signs point in one direction: this one looks nearly finished.
In Other News...
Canadiens Still Have One Roster Question Around Xhekaj And Bolduc
Geoff Molson sounded upbeat in a recent interview about where the Canadiens stand after last season, saying he was satisfied with the teams performance and encouraged by the way the roster is developing. He also made clear that Arber Xhekaj and Zach Bolduc remain important pieces in the organizations plans, a notable point with training camp approaching and Montreal still sorting through the edges of its depth chart.
The bigger question is how both players fit once the dust settles. Xhekajs usage has not fully settled into a defined role, and Bolduc remains unsigned after finishing the playoffs on the fourth line, leaving Montreal with one of those familiar late-summer roster puzzles that can shape how a team starts the year. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Roster Puzzle Puts Some Young Pieces In Play
The Canadiens search for help on the right side of their defense has turned into a roster puzzle with real long-term stakes. With future salary-cap room to work with, the front office can afford to think beyond a quick fix, and that has kept attention on a possible move for Zach Whitecloud as Montreal looks to balance its blue line while also adding more size and physicality up front.
What makes the conversation more interesting is the kind of young talent that could be pulled into the discussion if the Canadiens decide to press ahead. Montreal has prospects it would prefer not to move lightly, but it also has to weigh the value of future flexibility against the appeal of helping the current roster now. For the moment, it is still speculation and planning more than action, but the kind of move the Canadiens are considering could reshape more than one part of the lineup. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens May Go Only As Far As Ivan Demidov Takes Them
Montreal did not make many sweeping changes this offseason, choosing instead to tinker around the edges while letting the roster largely carry over. The most notable departures were Brendan Gallagher and Joe Veleno, and the additions were mostly depth pieces aimed at the AHL side, which leaves the Canadiens leaning on internal growth more than outside fixes.
Ivan Demidov is at the center of that bet after a rookie season that put him firmly on the leagues radar and left him second in Calder Trophy voting. He showed plenty of upside, but he also cooled late, and Montreals outlook now hinges on whether he can turn that promise into steadier second-year production. For a team that did not do much to change its ceiling, his next step may end up setting the tone. [Read more 🡒]