A Quiet Off-Season Might Be The Best Long-Term Plan For The Montreal Canadiens

Relatively speaking to the rest of the NHL and its most competitive teams, the Montreal Canadiens didn’t do much this off-season.

Outside of signing Ivan Demidov to a new long-term extension, they signed Sasha Pastujov, Hunter McKown, Maksymillian Szuber, Jared Davidson, Brett Berard, Bogdan Konyshkov, Reilly Walsh, Ethan Samson, Alex Belzile, and Samuel Poulin to one-year, $850,000 deals.

Kappo Kahkonen signed a one-year deal for a little more, and they inked Kriby Dach to a two-year extension and Jakub Dobes to a three-year deal. 

Many of these were smaller moves. The others were smart deals that didn’t require big money or big commitment. The Demidov deal is clearly the big spend, but it’s already being seen as one of the best deals of the summer. 

There were rumors that GM Kent Hughes was in on other things. He practically made a declaration at the end of last season that he’d be on the lookout for opportunities. Matthew Knies was linked, as was (loosely) Dylan Larkin. The team wants a second-line center, and Hughes isn’t afraid to make a move to acquire one. 

Hughes may not be done. Kirill Marchenko has been connected to the club as a possible addition to their top six, listed as a frontrunner if the Columbus Blue Jackets decide to move on from the pending 2027 RFA; the Canadiens like him as a fit. 

Maybe there’s a Sam Montembeault trade in the near future. With three goalies, Montembeault seems to be the odd man out and on an expiring deal. There’s some chatter about giving him an opportunity elsewhere, all while the Canadiens could capitalize on a market that might suddenly be exploding with teams that need help in net. 

Even with the signings and the rumors surrounding the Canadiens, the fact that they haven’t done more is potentially a good thing. This team is trending in the right direction. They may be Canada’s best shot at a Stanley Cup, and they pushed farther than any club north of the border last season. They’re young, they have good contracts on the books, they don’t have any glaring holes or deficiencies, and they’re only getting better. 

It would have been easy to undo a lot of the good this organization has done over the past few seasons. 

A bad contract or an overpriced player could have upset the apple cart. As it is, everyone on the Canadiens roster is bought in, with most taking less to play in Montreal. Bring in a player on a huge salary, and suddenly there’s a chance that salaries in the locker room become a question. 

Make a big trade, and Hughes is forced to send out a player or two who have been integral to the growth of this hockey club. It’s clear this core wants to take the next steps together. 

"It showed when we played Carolina just how detailed and connected they are," captain Nick Suzuki recently said. "That's the next step for us: taking our game and making it the best version it can be with every detail that goes into how we play. There's still room to grow for us, and if we get there, we're going to be a tough team to beat." 

He’s not talking about new faces coming in and pushing a group that couldn’t beat the Hurricanes on their own. Suzuki is talking about this team, as built, improving. 

Down the road, and as the 2026-27 season rolls along, changes can and will be made. Hughes will have identified where the team needs an upgrade, and he’ll work to find that player. The rest of the roster will have seen the need and be on board. That’s the type of change that turns a tight-knit group into an unstoppable force. Rushed off-season decisions could have done the opposite. 

See more of The Hockey News on Google and save us as a preferred source. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.