Done deal: One year Contracts for Samuel Blais and Kaapo Kahkonen
The Canadiens had a busy day on Tuesday with the opening of free agency in the NHL.
The organization started off with a trade in the morning, acquiring forward Zachary Bolduc from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for defenseman Logan Mailloux. Then, the Club agreed to terms on one-year, one-way contracts with forward Samuel Blais and goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen before announcing one-year, two-way deals with forward Alex Belzile and defenseman Nate Clurman.
The team also said farewell to some of its unrestricted free agents who signed with other teams, with Joel Armia and Christian Dvorak inking one-year contracts with the Los Angeles Kings and Philadelphia Flyers, respectively, while Michael Pezzetta signed with his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs for two years.
General manager Kent Hughes met the media in the early afternoon to discuss the opening of free agency, while Habs newcomers Bolduc and Blais also took questions from reporters via Zoom after joining the organization.
I’d say it was a mix of emotions. On one hand, for me, I’m leaving an organization where I made a lot of strong connections, where I met a lot of great people and made friends for life. On the other hand, it’s exciting. I grew up watching the Montreal Canadiens. […] I’m very excited.
It’s a part of my identity now. I’m a good skater who’s not afraid to play physically. I’m also the kind of guy who can make plays for his teammates and score goals. I want to improve on all these details in my game and playing a physical game is a part of my DNA.
