Zachary Bolduc still does not have an NHL contract, and the Montreal Canadiens are taking their time getting one done.
The Canadiens, who could use more scoring and depth up front, have stayed patient with the former St. Louis Blues first-round pick.
Bolduc arrived in Montreal last offseason in a one-for-one trade that sent Logan Mailloux to St. Louis, and both players have gone through uneven seasons since the deal.
Mailloux’s rough patches came first. His year got off to a bad start and even sent him to the AHL for a short stretch.
Once he came back, though, he looked like a different player and carved out a spot on the top pairing with Philip Broberg. The next step for him is clear: open the season strong and show he deserves to keep that role.
Bolduc’s path was different. He burst out of the gate in Montreal, scoring in three straight games and earning time on the top line and top power play unit.
That hot start cooled off, and he finished with 12 goals and 30 points in 78 games. That was a step back from his Blues season, when he had 19 goals and 36 points in 72 games.
His role shrank even more in the playoffs, where he averaged 11:23 of ice time after skating 13:38 per game in the regular season.
Even with the inconsistency, Bolduc still looks like the kind of winger Montreal can use. He brings a physical element, can win his minutes, and fits as a middle-six option behind a group that includes Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Ivan Demidov, with Michael Hage and Alexander Zharovsky also expected to be added soon.
The sense remains that Bolduc and the Canadiens will reach an agreement before the season begins, but the delay is getting harder to ignore.
"I'd love to play in Montreal for several seasons," said Bolduc to RDS. "But on the other hand, management has to make their own decisions too. Like I said, I'm not going to get ahead of myself on anything, but I trust my agent on that end and I'm confident that good things are coming."
Montreal has been nearly silent this offseason, which has led to at least one question: is a larger move coming, and could Bolduc be part of it? That part is still unknown. What is clear is that Bolduc remains a useful NHL winger no matter where he ends up.
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