Montreal Canadiens’ Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield Hit the Links

On Tuesday, Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and first-line sniper Cole Caufield took part in a media event at the Royal Montreal Golf Club where the 2024 Presidents Cup will be held in September.

The two forwards fielded media questions about the Olympics, the upcoming season and the impressive offseason signings executed by the Canadiens front office.

Ivan Demidov

It’s no surprise that 2024 fifth-overall pick Ivan Demidov was discussed. His selection by the Canadiens has been the talk of the Summer, and the Habs duo didn’t shy away from singing his praise.

“He seems like a really good kid. From his highlights, it’s pretty fun to watch,” said Caufield. “Everybody should be excited to get a player like that. I know we are excited… I texted him right after the pick. He got back to me. [There’s a little] language barrier. We’ll have to teach him a few things. But, like we said, we’re really excited to get a player like that.

Barron, Xhekaj, Guhle, Slafkovsky contracts

With Kent Hughes signing Justin Barron and Arber Xhekaj to new contracts, and with the extensions of Kaiden Guhle and Juraj Slafkovsky, the Canadiens are poised to open the 2024-25 season with a nearly identical roster to last season.

Suzuki spoke on the signings, saying “All four of those guys are really young pieces that showed a lot and it’s nice to get those guys signed and have a core that we can build for a long time.”

Barron and Xhekaj both signed two-year contracts valued at $2.3 M and $2.6 M respectively. Slafkovsky’s deal is an eight-year extension worth $7.6 million annually, while Guhle’s is a six-year extension worth $5.5 million annually.

“We’re both really excited for what happened over the Summer and with the draft and free agency, I think everything worked out for us pretty good,” Suzuki added.

Olympic prowess

With the 2024 Paris Olympic Summer Games ongoing, Montreal media was curious to know where the duo ranked competing for their country in their list of priorities. Caufield competed in the IIHF World Championship for the U.S. back in May, while Suzuki declined an invitation to join the Team Canada camp.

“Obviously, it would be pretty cool to represent your country in that honour, in that way,” said Caufield, speaking on the Olympics. He added that he plays for the Canadiens first. He additionally spoke on the experience at the World Championships, saying it was a cool experience to meet some of the newer players and enjoyed the travel.

For Suzuki, he talked about how the upcoming season could garner Olympic roster spots for Habs players.

“If we do our job with our team and put ourselves in a good spot heading into the break, there’s a good chance a couple of us could represent our country,” he said. “I think if we focus on our game and the team’s game, we’ll show that we can play a team game going into those tournaments. I think everyone’s excited to have the best on best competition back and the 4 Nations [Tournament] will be a good step into the Olympics the following year.”

Playoffs

Yes, the two attackers were asked about the prospect of making the playoffs next year, rather if the team expects to make the final dance. 

Suzuki initially cracked a joke saying that vice-president of hockey operation Jeff Gorton probably won't speak on playoffs, he then gave a more fleshed out answer:

"We're all coming in wanting to make the playoffs and go as far as we can and win a cup. Every year you're climbing that mountain, trying to get to the top. We took a great step in the right direction. I think we're just going to continue to do that with our group getting a bit older and more mature."

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