On December 24, the Montreal Canadiens [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens] announced that they had signed their third-round pick at the 2025 draft, Bryce Pickford, to an ELC contract. The blueliner might have been ignored in his first year of draft eligibility, but he has improved leaps and bounds since then and had a fantastic regular season, captaining the Medicine Hat Tigers. The 20-year-old put up 83 points, including 45 goals in 55 games, finishing 14th in points and tied-second in goals. The only defenseman in the WHL who had more points than him was his defensive partner, Jonas Woo, and no other blueliner had as many goals. Will The Canadiens Be Able To Handle The Desperate Blue Jackets? [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/game-day/will-the-canadiens-be-able-to-handle-the-desperate-blue-jackets] The Canadiens Sent A Message, They’re Not Afraid To Get Their Hands Dirty [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/the-canadiens-sent-a-message-they-re-not-afraid-to-get-their-hands-dirty] Suzuki Made History For The Canadiens As Well [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/suzuki-made-history-for-the-canadiens-as-well] The youngster’s fantastic form has carried over into the playoffs, where he has six points in as many games, including five goals. He helped the Tigers eliminate the Regina Pats in five games in the first round and earned a date with the Calgary Hitmen in the second round. On Friday night, in the first game of their second-round matchup, the captain was the difference maker, scoring the Tigers’ second goal of the game on the power play before scoring the game-winner with only one minute left in the first overtime period. While it’s still early in the tournament, Pickford looks well on his way to having another great playoff year after gathering 24 points in just 18 games, leading the Tigers to the league championship after only losing two games in the four rounds. Unfortunately for Pickford and the Tigers, they couldn’t win the Memorial Cup, falling 4-1 to the London Knights in the final. Since then, the Tigers have lost top draft prospect Gavin McKenna, who moved on to the NCAA, but Medicine Hat still had a great season, and its Memorial Cup hopes are alive and well. This year’s tournament will be held in Kelowna, British Columbia, from May 22 to May 31. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Follow Karine on X @KarineHains [https://x.com/KarineHains] Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/karinehains.bsky.social] and Threads @karinehains [https://www.threads.net/@karinehains]. Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/] for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens. Join the discussion by signing up to the Canadiens' roundtable [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens] on The Hockey News. Subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free [https://thehockeynews.store/products/print-subscription]. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I].
