Montreal Canadiens goaltender Samuel Montembeault deserves more attention

Tyler Yaremchuk: Let’s get to some breaking news this morning, you were the one who broke it on X, Sam Montembeault and the Montreal Canadiens have agreed to a three-year contract extension that has an AAV just north of $3 million.

Tyler Yaremchuk: Montembeault’s numbers have been good and has put together a nice season with the Habs and he’s been having a couple of really nice runs here. He’s turned his career around after basically being a waiver wire guy. Dating back to last season, Montembeault has saved 21.4 goals goals above expected in 50 games. It is ninth in the NHL in that span and the only goalies above him are Sorokin, Ullmark, Saros, Hellebuyck, Shesterkin, Swayman, Vasilevskiy and Oettinger. Elite company to be a part of and wrapping this up by saying a nice piece of work by Kent Hughes

Frank Seravalli: It is, and I think some people look at the AAV and go ‘Oh that’s kind of high’ but if you think that consider what some of the other going rates have been for guys who are extending in similar positions and chewing up UFA years. Take a look at the contract of Elvis Merzlikins at $5.4 million, and Joonas Korpisalo’s deal he got with Ottawa, which is in the $5 million. Montembeault may not have that same body style of work but what I think this signifies is that he is hoped to be the guy that bridges the gap for the Canadiens between Carey Price and the next guy of the future.

Frank Seravalli: You look at Jake Allen and the spot he’s been in and it’s unfortunate for him with mop-up duty in some tough years. But when you look at him moving forward, there’s a reason I put him or Cayden Primeau on the trade targets board yesterday. I didn’t include Montembeault because that was always the designation and the thought process was he is their guy and in a perfect world Primeau will be the backup and you move Allen on to another team. I’d expect now with this extension, the Canadiens will pick up the discussions to get to a point where they only have two goalies and go on from Allen, and not in a negative way but because Primeau was excellent last night and it’s only his fifth game of the season. It’s not ideal having three goalies and they’ve sort of lived with that and done quite well and I think some praise for Montembeault needs to go to their goalie coach  Éric Raymond, who has done a fantastic job with all three guys.