It's been an interesting last few months for former Detroit Red Wings forward Joe Veleno, whom they selected in the opening round of the 2018 NHL Draft but never truly broke out offensively. He was traded by the Red Wings to the Chicago Blackhawks on March 7, where he would remain for the rest of the regular season. Chicago then flipped him to the Seattle Kraken as part of a package to acquire Andre Burakovsky. Now, Veleno is going home. After the final season of his contract was bought out by the Kraken shortly after he was acquired, the Kirkland, Quebec-born Veleno became a free agent and has since agreed to a one-year contract with the Montreal Canadiens worth $900K. Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/] team site to stay connected to the latest news [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/latest-news], game-day [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/game-day]coverage, and player features [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/players]. Veleno has already been making himself at home, taking selfies inside of the Montreal dressing room at Bell Centre: Ironically, Veleno's first regular season game as a Canadien will come at Little Caesars Arena against the Red Wings, who are hosting Montreal in their 2025-26 home opener. Veleno disappointed in what was his final one and a half seasons with the Red Wings, particularly in the absence of the injured Dylan Larkin in March 2024 when he was given multiple chances to center Detroit's top line. From March 2 through April 1, a span of 15 games, Veleno scored zero goals and had zero assists. Before being traded this most recent season to Chicago, Veleno had scored just five goals with five assists in 56 games, but would score a modest three goals with four assists in 18 games in a Blackhawks jersey. Now, Veleno has the chance to try and salvage his NHL career by playing with his hometown club. As previously stated, Veleno will make his return to Little Caesars Arena with the Canadiens on October 9, which will be followed by games against Detroit on January 10 in Montreal, and then again in Detroit on March 19. Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwnuDfCA?ceid=CA:en&oc=3] favorites!
