Montreal Canadiens: Three Free Agents The Habs Could Still Target (and afford)
Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin has been busy this offseason. Is he done yet?
Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin has been quite busy this offseason. He has taken a roster that, to put it mildly, disappointed last regular season and added pieces to every part of the lineup.
He brought in some reinforcements up front by signing Tyler Toffoli and trading for Josh Anderson. He signed Joel Edmundson to add some bulk to the blue line and also brought in Jake Allen who will be the best backup Carey Price has had since Jaro Halak was so good that he took the starter’s job.
Is that it for the Canadiens?
It could be, especially since they are approaching the salary cap. Right now, it looks like the Habs are going to have to carry 22 players instead of 23 next season. This would allow them to come in just under the salary cap and wouldn’t allow for many trades or acquisitions throughout the season.
However, if the Habs are going to add someone now, they could afford a free agent, as long as they take less than $900,000. If we take a quick look at the Habs current roster, they would be able to sign a player for this much, but would probably be most comfortable signing a player at league minimum which is $700,000.
So, the Habs could add another free agent as long as they come in well under a million bucks. Right now, there are dozens of players who played in the league last season that are still looking for contracts. Under normal circumstances, top six players like Mike Hoffman and Mikael Granlund would be signed by now. Also, depth players with skill like Andreas Athanasiou and Anthony Duclair would probably have found a new home by now as well.
However, these aren’t normal circumstances and players are starting to get a little nervous on the free agent market, I would imagine.
Who could be enticed to sign a one-year contract at $700,000 or so to come in and add some depth for Montreal? It would likely have to be a forward since the Canadiens have a number of options like Cale Fleury, Alexander Romanov, Xavier Ouellet and Otto Leskinen who could be called up to fill in if necessary.
So, which forwards would be willing to take a minimum wage offer and could find a depth role on the Canadiens? Let’s take a look at three potential soon-to-be Habs.