Once again, Zachary Buldoc has come up in the clutch for his new team against his former team. He opened scoring with a goal in the second period. The Montreal Canadiens went on to win 2-0 against the St. Louis Blues.
This is certainly a game that helps decide whether or not the Canadiens have the edge in the trade that sent defenseman Logan Mailloux to St. Louis at least early on. The head-to-head section of the checklist has been decided.
Naturally, it goes beyond just the one goal. Buldoc has been pretty consistent for the Canadiens all season. Through 12 games, he’s posted five goals and two assists for seven points.
How he’s done so far only scratches the surface for how well he’s looked with the Habs’ logo across his chest.
Bolduc paying early dividends for Canadiens
Assuming he can keep this pace, he’ll be in for some career numbers. He’s on an 84-game pace for 35 goals and 49 points. Landing a 30-plus goal scorer in a one-for-one swap would make this trade even more of a win for the Canadiens.
That still has to actually happen, but it helps show how well it’s working out early on.
Currently, his career bests are his 19 goals and 36 points during the 2024-25 season. His 17 assists during 2025-26 were his career high in that stat.
He’s not necessarily benefiting from playing with anybody in particular either. One of his goals was assisted by Nick Suzuki, and another by Lane Hutson. That still leaves four where those players didn’t touch the ice along with him.
That’s significant knowing that Suzuki is set to miss between two and four weeks. This early success likely won’t be stifled.
A breakout is coming just after he accepted a team-friendly deal. After becoming a restricted free agent over the offseason, he accepted a four-year contract worth $16.8 million. With the salary cap experiencing exponential growth, a cap hit of $4.2 million is minuscule.
How’s the other side of the trade doing?
That’s still to be determined. Mailloux is out for eight weeks with an injury he suffered during a preseason game. It required surgery. So time will tell if he’s able to make up for the lost time.
However, if you’re the Blues, seeing the former member of the team succeed while you’re waiting for your new defenseman to recover probably doesn’t feel too great.
For what it's worth, Mailloux can still be a solid addition for the Blues. He picked up 13 points in 67 games last season. According to Hockey Reference, he had a 2.2 points share. It's respectable numbers.
But, for now, the early laugh goes to Montreal. We’ll see how it works out over a full season in time, but right now, it would be hard to find any regrets.
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