Matheson (lower-body) will make his season debut on Tuesday.
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Montreal Canadiens News
Evans (undisclosed) is questionable to play Tuesday vs. San Jose.
Evans was missing from Monday's practice and is questionable to play on Tuesday. Adam Brooks skated in his spot at practice and would likely replace him in the lineup if Evans is unable to play.
Blais (undisclosed) will return to the Rangers lineup on Saturday.
Blais missed Thursday's game vs. the Stars but will be back in the lineup tonight in Montreal. Blais will replace Ryan Strome, who is on the COVID-19 protocol list.
The Avalanche have reassigned Alex Newhook to Colorado (AHL).
The Avalanche are likely going to be without Nathan MacKinnon (COVID), Valeri Nichushkin (upper-body) and Gabriel Landeskog (suspension) on Saturday, so sending Newhook to the AHL opens up enough cap space to recall multiple forwards to fill the voids. Stefan Matteau and Dylan Sikura were recalled.
Blais (lower-body) is day-to-day; will not play Thursday vs. the Stars.
Goalie Start
Montembeault will make his Canadiens debut Thursday in Buffalo.
Matheson is day-to-day with a lower-body injury; will not play Tuesday.
Matheson is dealing with a nagging lower-body injury and will miss the Penguins season opener in Tampa Bay. With Matheson out, Mark Friedman will draw into the lineup.
The Canadiens have signed Nick Suzuki to an eight-year contract extension worth $63.0 million ($7.875M AAV).
Suzuki is entering the final year of his entry-level contract and will get a huge raise next season, going from $863.3K AAV to $7.875M AAV. With Philip Danault now in Los Angeles, Suzuki will be tasked with playing major minutes in 2021-22, as he looks to build on his 60-point pace from a season ago.
The Canadiens have signed Arber Xhekaj to a three-year, entry-level contract.
The Canadiens have signed Jake Evans to a three-year, $5.1 million contract extension.
Waiver Move
The Canadiens have claimed Samuel Montembeault off waivers from the Panthers.
Caufield (upper-body) is expected to miss one week.
The Blues have signed Zachary Bolduc to a three-year, entry-level contract.
The Panthers have re-signed Samuel Montembeault to a one-year, two-way contract.
Byron will miss five months after undergoing hip surgery.
The Capitals have signed Hunter Shepard to a two-year, entry-level contract.
The Kings have signed Phillip Danault to a six-year deal worth $33.0 million ($5.5M AAV).
Laine has accepted his qualifying offer, signing a one-year deal worth $7.5M.
Things did not go well for Laine after he was traded to the Blue Jackets, scoring 10 goals with 11 assists (21 points) in 45 games--18-goal, 20-assist per 82 game pace. However, Laine should benefit from the Blue Jackets and John Tortorella parting ways and the one-year deal gives him an opportunity to have a bounce-back season and cash in next year.
The Rangers have acquired Sammy Blais and a 2022 second-round pick from the Blues for Pavel Buchnevich.
Blais has been a fixture of the Blues' bottom-6 over the last three seasons and likely won't be able to expand on that role with the Rangers. He doesn't offer a lot of offence, posting a career-high of just 15 points (8G / 7A) in 36 games a season ago. The Rangers have plenty of capable top-9 forwards, so expect Blais to be a fourth-liner to start 2021-22.
The Canadiens have signed Alex Belzile to a one-year, two-way contract extension.
Belzile had another strong AHL campaign in 2021, scoring four goals with 10 assists (14 points) in 17 games with Laval. He's an AHL veteran with just two games of NHL experience, so expect the 29-year-old to remain with Laval to start the 2021-22 season.
