Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler are the future in net for the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens have already rewarded Dobes for his stellar play this season by signing him to a three-year contract paying him $5.36 million per season. Samuel Montembeault went into last season as Montreal’s unquestioned starting goalie, but after a slow start that never improved, he was relegated to the press box, as the Canadiens elected to move forward with their young tandem of Dobes and Fowler.
Heading into this offseason, it felt clear that the keys were being passed to the two youngsters, and Montembeault would likely be moved. However, as the offseason continues and teams address their goaltending situation, it becomes more difficult to move the Quebec-born goaltender. The biggest obstacle to moving Montembeault is the availability of three-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck. It is not guaranteed that Hellebuyck will be moved, but the thought of him being available is enough to delay a Montembeault trade.
Montembeault rumours are almost non-existent
There has been little news about Montembeault this offseason. A ton of NHL teams needed goalies, but as the NHL Entry Draft passed by and headed into free agency, the market for goaltenders had dried up. The Florida Panthers were looking for their successor to Sergei Bobrovsky and had their eye on Hellebuyck. Florida instead traded for Akira Schmid from the Vegas Golden Knights and Jacob Markstrom from the New Jersey Devils. The Edmonton Oilers were in desperate need of an upgrade and elected to bring in Frederik Andersen through free agency to pair alongside Tristan Jarry. The Buffalo Sabres have also reportedly been looking for an upgrade in net. They have had their eyes set on Hellebuyck, and it looked like a deal was close at the draft, but nothing ever materialized.
The Sabres' dream move would be Hellebuyck, and they are likely not even viewing Montembeault as a backup plan, as it would mostly be a lateral upgrade. Buffalo are likely not the only team looking to acquire Hellebuyck, which could explain the lack of interest in the Canadiens goalie. Montreal will probably need to wait for the Hellebuyck situation to be resolved before they could move Montembeault, but even then, there could be a real chance that he starts training camp with the Canadiens. If that is the case, what does Montreal do with Montembeault?
Montembeault stays in Montreal as insurance?
If the Canadiens can not find a trade partner for Montembeault, does he come to training camp to compete for the backup job? Fowler has been viewed as the future and impressed during his 17 games last season. There is always the possibility that he takes a step back in his development, and by having Montembeault stay in town, you have the option to send the young goaltender to Laval to continue his development. The Canadiens do not have a ton of money invested in their goaltenders next season, with Dobes’ extension only kicking in during the 2027-28 season. If they wanted to, they could keep Montembeault's salary on the books in case of emergency. The problem then becomes, if Fowler does not falter, is Montembeault ok with playing out the season with the Laval Rocket?
Trading Montembeault is not the only option if Montreal really wants to move him. The Canadiens could buy out the rest of his contract and give him the freedom of choosing his next destination. Montreal likely will want to wait and see what else happens this offseason before doing that, as they could still recoup some assets if another team believes Montembeault’s performance last season was indeed just a down year. As it stands now, Montembeault's future with the Canadiens is in limbo, and it does not look like we will be getting a decision any time soon.
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