MONTREAL, QC. — The past few off-seasons have had Montreal Canadiens fans really learning what it is to cheer for a team in the age of the salary cap. Last year, the door to the vault of the bank was wide open and plenty of money was on the table for Bob Gainey to spend on the free agent market. This allowed the Habs organization to make the acquisitions of such key players as Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta to name a few.
This past year, the situation was a little different for Pierre Gauthier, money being much tighter, and we saw our beloved Habs in a position that didn’t allow them to do too much, yet they somehow were able to make a few moves that could be promising.
Assuming there are no big surprises in the upcoming preseason, here are the new faces we should see wearing the red, white and blue this season:
| Player | Salary/Yrs remaining |
| Lars Eller | $1,270,833/2 Yrs |
| Dustin Boyd | $650,000/2 Yr |
| Jeff Halpern | $600,000/1 Yr |
| P.K. Subban | $875,000/2 Yrs |
| Alexandre Picard | $600,000/1 Yr |
| Alex Auld | $600,000/1 Yr |
Lars Eller, who was obtained in the Jaroslav Halak trade, is a great surprise. I say this because following the trade, many had Eller pegged as being 1-2 years away from being NHL ready. As the season nears, many have him starting the season on the second or third line. He has a 2-way contract so it’s not unimaginable to think he could end up in Hamilton at some point this season, depending on his play.
Dustin Boyd was part of the Sergei Kostitsyn trade to the Nashville Predators. In return, the Canadiens received the rights to Boyd and Dan Ellis. Dan Ellis became an unrestricted free agent, tested the market and signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Canadiens were unable to come to an agreement with Boyd before free agency began, but signed him as an unrestricted free agent. By all appearances, he should start the season on the third or fourth line.
(Read Dan Ellis says “Peace Out, Twitter!” to hear how Dan Ellis recently deactivated his twitter account.)
Jeff Halpern is the most recent of the signings. A born fourth line player, that’s exactly where he should be to start the season. He was obtained on the free agent market after pretty much all the other teams passed over him.
P.K. Subban is the great breath of fresh air we all remember from last season. He had two assists in two regular season games, and then impressed the gallery with a goal and seven assists in 14 playoff games. He will be playing under the rookie status this season, and many have him as a strong contender for the Calder trophy, awarded to the league’s outstanding rookie of the season.
Alexandre Picard was obtained on the free agent market. He’s currently pegged as the team’s eighth defenseman, seventh if you consider Markov should be out of the lineup for the start of the season. For now, it’s a little unclear whether he should start the season in Montreal or Hamilton.
Finally, we have Alex Auld. Also obtained on the free agent market. He knows his role, accepts it, welcomes it and should prove to be a great backup to Carey Price this season.
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Cap-wise, where do we stand now? The Habs have a little over $778,000 available on the $59,400,000 cap, therefore not allowing much wiggle room for moves during the season. Some have speculated that Ryan O’Byrne’s days could be numbered in Montreal, but until he’s gone, it’s just a rumor.
The purpose of this piece is actually not to look at the past or present situation, but rather to look forward at what Pierre Gauthier will be faced with in the next off-season, and in a way, he’s already facing it now.
Technically speaking, the Habs have close to $25,000,000 coming off the books at the end of this upcoming season. I guess this might sound great on the surface, but actually, Gauthier will be in a much more difficult situation then it might appear. The reason for this is that a few key signings might engulf a large portion of this amount. Let’s take a look at the situation per position.
Forwards:
| Player | Contract Status | Salary |
| Andrei Kostitsyn | RFA | $3,250,000 |
| Benoit Pouliot | RFA | $1,350,000 |
| Maxim Lapierre | RFA | $900,000 |
| Dustin Boyd | RFA | $650,000 |
| Jeff Halpern | UFA | $600,000 |
| Mathieu Darche | UFA | $500,000 |
| Tom Pyatt | RFA | $500,000 |
That’s seven players whose salaries combine for $7,750,000. Just like this season, next season will probably see the Habs signing many bottom six forwards at sub-million dollar salaries. You would also think that Andrei Kostitsyn and his $3 million dollar plus salary will be gone following this season. A player like Benoit Pouliot has a lot to prove this season following the contract he obtained in the off-season. Many were surprised at the amount he was given, myself included, but he now has one year to prove he belongs in the NHL, otherwise, he should be gone as well.
Defensemen:
| Player | Contract Status | Salary |
| Andrei Markov | UFA | $5,750,000 |
| Roman Hamrlik | UFA | $5,500,000 |
| Hal Gill | UFA | $2,250,000 |
| Josh Gorges | RFA | $1,100,000 |
| Ryan O’Byrne | RFA | $941,667 |
| Alexandre Picard | RFA | $600,000 |
That’s 6 defensemen whose salaries combine for over $16 million dollars. Putting speculations aside that Markov could be traded, should the Montreal Canadiens resign him, it’s fair to say that it will be for slightly more then the $5,750,000 he is currently making. Just how much more only the future will tell. If I had to guess, I would say that Markov’s next contract would be around $7 million dollars per year.
Then we have Josh Gorges, who many have pegged as the next captain of the team. The feeling seems unanimous that this guy is a keeper, and it seems like it would only be a question of time before the Canadiens sign him to an extension. Currently making $1,100,000 on his last year of contract, I would imagine his next contract would be around $3-3.5 million per season.
Assuming I’m anywhere close in my assumptions, that would mean the Canadiens would spend at least $10 million on two defensemen, therefore leaving approx $6 million to spend.
Goalies:
| Player | Contract Status | Salary |
| Alex Auld | UFA | $1,000,000 |
Alex Auld’s (UFA) $1 million dollar salary comes to end following this upcoming season. Whether he is resigned following this season will depend on three things; his play; his relationship with Carey Price; and his willingness to resign for not one penny more.
Read Who is Alex Auld? for my views on Alex Auld’ role this upcoming season.
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So putting all the eggs back into one basket, assuming no player moves are made (which is unlikely mind you), the Habs have close to $25 million dollars available after next season. I’m going to assume that Markov will resign for about $7 million dollars and Josh Gorges for about $3.5 million dollars. I’m also going to assume the Habs will sign a forward for approximately $4 million dollars per season. I’m saying this based on that I believe is that the Habs will not resign Kostitsyn and go after a big free agent in next year’s off season.
If I were to be correct in my assumptions, that will leave the Habs with a little under $10 and a half million dollars to sign 11 players. Even if I am incorrect, the Habs will have a lot of contracts coming to an end, and it’s safe to say, next year’s off-season should look in many ways a lot like this season, with many signings of $600,000-$1 million dollar contracts.
Could you do better then Pierre Gauthier? It’s fair to say, it’s not easy living in the cap age.
(Photo: John Kenney, The Gazette)
Man this guy can’t write an article for sh*t! I cant believe that you would put this up here! great idea for an article, but lets get real, you write like you’re in high school !
Not to mention you hardly seem to have a good sense for the business of hockey.
Worst cap related article i’ve ever read
you did not include Spacek in the assessment of the Canadiens’ defense. Is his contract finished with the team?
@Ellis
Was that really necessary?
i’ll admit it didn’t blow my mind, but its a reasonable synopsis of the current situation and decisions that must be made going forward.
I’ll also admit that this is my first time on this site, but the grammar and spelling suggest a decent understanding of the english language. What more do you want?
Troll…
Interesting analysis Stevo! Knowing me as you do, you can anticipate I’m going to disagree here tho.
You know I love Josh Gorges but 3 to 3.5 mil a year is too much IMO. I would drop him for that – seriously – even if he’s wearing the C. 2.5 is my upper limit for him, assuming I’m now the Old Goat. Also, bye bye Roman, Spaco and Gill. Bring up the kiddies or sign cheaper UFAs. Markov can have his 7 mil if he puts the screws to me (or just screws me). ;)
Bye bye Kostitsyn. If Pouliot doesn’t step it up, he goes too. And believe it or not, if Max doesn’t up his game I’m going to resign him for about the same or show him the door too. If Boyd performs he can stay. Bye Halpern, and since I hated the signing to begin with, bye Darche. Let’s make way for the young bloods!
Ryan O’Bryne has great potential why in heaven’s name why won’t them leave him alone and play.
Thank you all for taking the time to read and comment:
Tyg: For Josh Gorges, I’d like to make a quick little comparison with Willie Mitchell.
Willie Mitchell in his past 2 seasons had:
– 4G, 8A (12 pts) and 3G, 20A (23 pts)
Josh Gorges in the same 2 seasons had:
– 3G, 7A (10 pts) and 4G, 19A (23 pts)
Very comparable stats and Josh Gorges is about 7 years younger. Willie Mitchell just signed a 2 year contract for $7M. This is really what i based myself on when I came up with that number.
I don’t think the team can afford to drop him. He’s one of the, if not the best defensive defenseman on the team. He gets my 4th star award all the way, and i predict he will be wearing the “C” next season! :)
Faiz: Thank you, appreciated :)
Dave: The reason i didn’t include Spacek is because he has another 2 years left on his contract. (Was trying to focus on next year’s decisions.) I fear we will be stuck with him until his contract ends.
Ellis: I might not be a professional writer of any sort, but i truly enjoy blogging and writing on the Montreal Canadiens and NHL hockey. I’m sorry this piece was not to your level of satisfaction, but i fail to understand what goal you are trying to achieve with the comment you left behind.
If you feel you have something to teach me, i invite you to write to me at [email protected], i’m very open to criticism and i’ll take any constructive feedback with open arms.
If however, your goal is simply to complain and spew negative, unprofessional and purely childish remarks, forget about this article for a second and just think about how that makes YOU look.
Thanks again for taking the time.
Hi Dennis, i think your comment came in while i was doing my previous reply.
Ryan O’Byrne, wow. He’s another great example (In my opinion) of how the Habs as an organization have a lot to improve upon when it comes to the development of its young players. One this is clear, he won’t get better sitting on the bench, so they’ll need to decide what to do with him or he’ll go down as another wasted talent.
$7 million for Markov? The guy’s a hell of a blueliner, but the only way I’d do that deal is if it were short-term. Otherwise, lock him in till he’s 40 and bring the average cap hit down as much as you can. He’s going to be 32 this year, right around where players begin to decline. The wear-and-tear of age is going to start being an issue in future seasons and reduce his effectiveness. There’s a risk that his contract could become similar to Hamrlik’s and really tie the hands of the team in a few years time. Think of how much better off the team would be if Hamrlik’s cap hit were about $2 million less.
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