Montreal Canadiens in Other News: Missed Calls, Even Series, AHL Departures

Lukas Vejdemo, Laurent Dauphin, Signed to One-Year Deals

Try as they might, Lukas Vejdemo and Laurent Dauphin weren’t able to find a place on the Canadiens roster this season but nonetheless finds themselves with one-year, two-way extensions. A former third-round pick of the Canadiens in the 2015 NHL draft, Vejdemo bided his time in the SweHL with Djurgardens IF before being signed to a two-year entry-level deal in May of 2018. Dauphin, a former second-round pick of the Phoenix Coyotes in 2013, had bounced around the AHL with the occasional cup of coffee here and there, before being acquired by Montreal in exchange for the failed first-round project Michael McCarron.

Since arriving in Montreal, the two have served a role and served it well for the Laval Rocket, Vejdemo as a top defensive option and penalty killer, and Dauphin as a two-way forward with slight offensive upside. After posting 13-16-29 totals over 66 games in 2018-19 as the Rocket juggled a PTO-filled lineup to a near playoff birth, Vejdemo has since become a fixture on Laval’s top six, ditto Dauphin after strong late-season performances in 2019-20 and 2020-21. After playing out the first half of 2019-20 in Laval, Vejdemo earned his first cup of coffee with the Canadiens, recording 1 goal over 7 games, while Dauphin hasn’t seen NHL ice since 2018-19.

With both players now playing on consecutive one-year deals, Vejdemo and Dauphin’s futures in Montreal are shaky at best, but if the two are able to keep up their recent string of steady production, I could see either or potentially sneak into a fourth-line job in the future, whether that be with the Canadiens or elsewhere. Either way, they’ll continue to serve their normal roles in Laval, and in my mind will continue to be a key part of the Rocket as the team looks to make their first Calder Cup playoffs appearance since 2017.