The Montreal Canadiens center Alex Newhook is expected to be sidelined for 10 to 12 weeks due to a high ankle sprain, the team announced on Saturday. The player was injured during the Canadiens’ 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.

Newhook was driving toward the Panthers’ goal during the third period when he decided to shift positions after his view of goal was blocked. He was then involved in a collision, forcing the player to lose his footing and fall leg-first into the net. Upon returning to the bench to receive medical treatment, he was unable to return to the ice for the remainder of the game.

Scoring seven goals and 13 points in 26 games this season, Newhook has been a critical forward in the Canadiens’ attack. These statistics have put him on track to finish with career highs in goals and points in what would be the best season in his career to date.

The post Canadiens’ Alex Newhook Out for Up to 12 Weeks appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens’ veteran defenseman David Savard is expected to miss six to eight weeks due to a fracture on his left hand. He was injured during the Canadiens’ 3-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night, going off early after blocking multiple shots with one deflecting off his skate blade.

“He’s disappointed,” Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said about Savard. “He’s been around the league for a long time, he knows this is the game. And the kind of game he plays, he knows he exposes himself to that.” The 33-year-old player joins center Kirby Dach and defenseman Kaiden Guhle on the sidelines.

The Canadiens struggled during their first game without Savard, losing 5-2 to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night. Justin Barron and Mike Matheson scored for the Canadiens.

The post Canadiens’ Defenseman David Savard Out With Fracture appeared first on SportzBonanza.

For years, NHL analysts had center Shane Wright as the best available prospect in the 2022 class and the favorite to go first overall. However, once the 2022 NHL Entry Draft actually came about, it was left wing Juraj Slafkovsky that had his name called first.

While Slafkovsky was somewhat unknown until recently, the Montreal Canadiens obviously liked what they saw from him at the international tournaments. The 18-year-old had a modest 2021–22 season with TPS, contributing just 10 points in 31 games, but impressed at the World Championship by scoring three goals and adding six assists for the Slovakia national team. It appears that the Canadiens went with potential here, and time will tell whether their gamble paid off.

The New Jersey Devils also took a Slovakia-born player when they got on the clock with the No. 2 pick, opting for defenseman Simon Nemec. In 39 games with HK Nitra, Nemec had one goal and 25 assists. With the third overall pick, the Arizona Coyotes took Logan Cooley of the U.S. National U18 Team. Cooley is coming off a 75-point season.

Wright, who had an impressive 94 points in 2021-22 with Kingston Frontenacs in OHL, had to wait until the Seattle Kraken got on the clock to hear his name called. The feeling here is that the Kraken got a steal of the draft and will be set on the center position for the foreseeable future. The Ontario native is also considered more NHL-ready than most other players in the class and could contribute pretty soon.

Check out the full 2022 NHL Entry Draft selections below.

The post Canadiens Take LW Juraj Slafkovsky First Overall in 2022 NHL Entry Draft appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Canada national women’s hockey team icon Marie-Philip Poulin has been hired as a player development consultant by the Montreal Canadiens, the team’s general manager Kent Hughes announced on Tuesday.

“Marie-Philip is one of the best players on the planet and she has won at the highest level, which will be very beneficial for our players,” Hughes explained in his statement. Poulin won four Olympic medals during her time with the Canadian national team.

The 31-year-old player will work with the Canadiens on a part-time basis as she continues her playing career. She will engage in a hybrid work role, joining the players for in-person training sessions as well as video sessions where she will assist them in skills development.

During her time in Canadian colors, Poulin made history by becoming the first hockey player to score a goal in four straight Olympic finals. Among the silverware in her trophy cabinet are a total of 15 medals earned at international competitions, among which are three Olympic gold medals.

Poulin scored the gold medal-winning goals for Canada at the 2010 Vancouver Games and 2014 Sochi Games as well as at the 2022 Beijing Games, where she scored twice in order to hand Canada a 3-2 victory over the United States.

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Martin St. Louis has been named head coach of the Montreal Canadiens, signing a three-year contract extension through the 2024-25 season. The 32nd head coach in the franchise’s history, St. Louis was hired as the team’s interim coach last season despite lacking coaching experience.

St. Louis was brought in on February 9, 2022, to replace previous head coach Dominique Ducharme who was fired after the Canadiens went from appearing in the Stanley Cup final in 2021 to last place in the NHL standings in 2021-22 with a record of 8-30-7.

“During his short stint behind the bench last season, Martin showed he has the required qualities to lead the Canadiens in the right direction,” Canadiens vice president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton said as part of a statement released by the team. Gorton previously approached St. Louis in an attempt to sign him as head coach for the New York Rangers’ minor league affiliate in Hartford.

Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes supported Gorton’s views, explaining that St. Louis exhibited the qualities that were necessary to pull the team out of their challenging predicament and return them to form.

The post St. Louis Named Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Following Interim Role appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens have already confirmed during the offseason that their captain Shea Weber won’t return to the ice in the 2021-22 NHL season due to a number of injuries he is dealing with. But it now seems that Weber’s health status is even worse than it was originally believed. 

Speaking with reporters earlier this week, the Canadiens general manager confirmed that Weber’s future as a professional hockey player is in doubt and said it is a “long shot” that the 36-year-old resumes his career in NHL.

“I think it’s a long shot,” Bergevin said. “You never know, but I would say it’s a long shot.”

Weber is reportedly dealing with lingering foot, ankle, thumb, and knee injuries that accumulated over the years. The veteran defenseman managed to play while hurt last season, helping the Canadiens to reach the Stanley Cup Finals, but that apparently came at a great cost.

Without Weber in their lineup, the Canadiens look nothing like the team that was close to winning it all just several months ago. Montreal lost all of their first four games of the 2021-22 season and conceded 15 goals compared to just three scored.

Shea Weber joined the Canadiens ahead of the 2016-17 season after spending the first 11 years of his career with the Nashville panthers. Webber, who collected seven All-Star nods while in the league, has 1,038 career NHL regular-season games in which he scored 224 goals and dished 365 assists.

The post Canadiens GM Calls Shea Weber Return “Long Shot” appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens have inked their center Nick Suzuki to a new eight-year extension. The team announced the news and revealed that the 22-year-old star will earn $63 million between 2022-23 and 2029-30.

Suzuki is currently in the final year of the entry-level deal he signed with the Vegas Golden Knights back in 2017. He arrived in Montreal in 2018 in a trade that sent the team’s captain Max Pacioretty to Las Vegas.

“We are very happy to secure Nick’s services for the next eight seasons,” said general manager Marc Bergevin in a brief statement.

Canadiens had an easy decision ahead of them as Suzuki proved to be a great addition to the team ever since he made his NHL debut in 2019-20. He played 71 games in his rookie season, contributing with 13 goals and 28 assists for a total of 41 points. This earned him an All-Rookie Team selection.

In his second year as a pro, Nick Suzuki also had 41 points (15 goals and 26 assists) but needed only 56 games to get there. He was especially impressive in the playoffs, scoring seven goals and dishing nine assists as the Canadiens reached the Stanley Cup Finals.

The post Canadiens Ink Nick Suzuki to 8-Year, $63 Million Contract appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Claude Julien’s stint as head coach for the Montreal Canadiens has officially come to an end. General manager Marc Bergevin confirmed the news on Wednesday, stating the following:

“I would like to sincerely thank Claude and Kirk for their contributions to our team over the past five years during which we worked together. I have great respect for these two men whom I hold in high regard,” said Bergevin announcing the decision.

In a social media farewell statement on Twitter, Bergevin also called Julien a “true pro”. Clearly this wasn’t a bad breakup, with other factors weighing in on the Montreal front office’s decision.

The Canadiens started off this season strongly with a 7-3 record, but then teetered over the next phase. Out of the following eight games, they only managed to win two of them. This is likely the reason for Julien’s firing.

In Julien’s place, assistant coach Dominique Ducharme will now serve as interim head coach. It’s unclear whether or not this interim spot will turn into something permanent, but perhaps that’ll depend on the team’s performance.

Although Julien was fired, he’s still a respectable coach in the league, and we wouldn’t be surprised if he’s hired by another team in the coming years.

The post Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Claude Julien Fired appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Veteran forward Tyler Toffoli will remain in Canada despite failing to agree to a new deal with Vancouver Canucks. On Monday, Montreal Canadiens announced that they have signed Toffoli to a four-year contract.

Toffoli will earn $4.25 million annually, with his deal being worth a total of $17 million.

Toffoli joined the Canucks in a trade with Los Angeles Kings in February but managed to play just 10 games with the organization before NHL stopped the regular season due to a coronavirus outbreak. The 28-year-old then missed three weeks of the playoffs due to an ankle injury but managed to get on the ice for the majority of the Western Conference semifinals.

On multiple previous occasions, Tyler Toffoli stated that he wants to remain in Vancouver and commit to a long-term deal. However, once the Canadiens came with an offer Canucks didn’t want to match, Toffoli didn’t have a hard time deciding what to do next.

Toffoli spent the majority of his career with the Kings, being part of the 2014 team that won the Stanley Cup. He has 525 career games in NHL in which he scored 145 goals and dished 155 assists. 

The post Canadiens Sign Forward Tyler Toffoli to a 4-Year, $17 Million Deal appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens didn’t waste their time locking Joel Edmundson to a new deal after recently trading with Carolina Hurricanes to get him. The Canadiens confirmed on Thursday that Edmundson inked an extension with the team that runs for the next four seasons.

Edmundson’s extension is worth $14 million and comes with a $3.5 million annual salary. The 27-year-old defensman was set to become a free agent after the 2019/20 NHL season.

Canadiens acquired Edmundson less than a week ago, sending a 2020 fifth-round pick to Carolina to get him. He is viewed by the organization as a potential key piece on defense, which is why they decided to hammer out a long-term deal as soon as possible.

The St. Louis Blues handed out Edmundson his NHL debut during the 2015/16 season, and he quickly became a regular part of the team’s lineup. He played 269 games in the next four years, contributing with 52 points (13 goals, 39 assists) and helped the franchise win Stanley Cup in 2019.

The Blues traded Edmundson to the Hurricanes prior to the start of 2019/20, and he ended up responding with a career-best campaign. He finished the regular season by playing 68 games and having seven goals and 13 assists for a career-high 20 points.

The post Joel Edmundson Extends with Canadiens, Will Earn $3.5 Million Annually appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens center Alex Newhook is expected to be sidelined for 10 to 12 weeks due to a high ankle sprain, the team announced on Saturday. The player was injured during the Canadiens’ 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.

Newhook was driving toward the Panthers’ goal during the third period when he decided to shift positions after his view of goal was blocked. He was then involved in a collision, forcing the player to lose his footing and fall leg-first into the net. Upon returning to the bench to receive medical treatment, he was unable to return to the ice for the remainder of the game.

Scoring seven goals and 13 points in 26 games this season, Newhook has been a critical forward in the Canadiens’ attack. These statistics have put him on track to finish with career highs in goals and points in what would be the best season in his career to date.

The post Canadiens’ Alex Newhook Out for Up to 12 Weeks appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens’ veteran defenseman David Savard is expected to miss six to eight weeks due to a fracture on his left hand. He was injured during the Canadiens’ 3-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night, going off early after blocking multiple shots with one deflecting off his skate blade.

“He’s disappointed,” Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said about Savard. “He’s been around the league for a long time, he knows this is the game. And the kind of game he plays, he knows he exposes himself to that.” The 33-year-old player joins center Kirby Dach and defenseman Kaiden Guhle on the sidelines.

The Canadiens struggled during their first game without Savard, losing 5-2 to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night. Justin Barron and Mike Matheson scored for the Canadiens.

The post Canadiens’ Defenseman David Savard Out With Fracture appeared first on SportzBonanza.

For years, NHL analysts had center Shane Wright as the best available prospect in the 2022 class and the favorite to go first overall. However, once the 2022 NHL Entry Draft actually came about, it was left wing Juraj Slafkovsky that had his name called first.

While Slafkovsky was somewhat unknown until recently, the Montreal Canadiens obviously liked what they saw from him at the international tournaments. The 18-year-old had a modest 2021–22 season with TPS, contributing just 10 points in 31 games, but impressed at the World Championship by scoring three goals and adding six assists for the Slovakia national team. It appears that the Canadiens went with potential here, and time will tell whether their gamble paid off.

The New Jersey Devils also took a Slovakia-born player when they got on the clock with the No. 2 pick, opting for defenseman Simon Nemec. In 39 games with HK Nitra, Nemec had one goal and 25 assists. With the third overall pick, the Arizona Coyotes took Logan Cooley of the U.S. National U18 Team. Cooley is coming off a 75-point season.

Wright, who had an impressive 94 points in 2021-22 with Kingston Frontenacs in OHL, had to wait until the Seattle Kraken got on the clock to hear his name called. The feeling here is that the Kraken got a steal of the draft and will be set on the center position for the foreseeable future. The Ontario native is also considered more NHL-ready than most other players in the class and could contribute pretty soon.

Check out the full 2022 NHL Entry Draft selections below.

The post Canadiens Take LW Juraj Slafkovsky First Overall in 2022 NHL Entry Draft appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Canada national women’s hockey team icon Marie-Philip Poulin has been hired as a player development consultant by the Montreal Canadiens, the team’s general manager Kent Hughes announced on Tuesday.

“Marie-Philip is one of the best players on the planet and she has won at the highest level, which will be very beneficial for our players,” Hughes explained in his statement. Poulin won four Olympic medals during her time with the Canadian national team.

The 31-year-old player will work with the Canadiens on a part-time basis as she continues her playing career. She will engage in a hybrid work role, joining the players for in-person training sessions as well as video sessions where she will assist them in skills development.

During her time in Canadian colors, Poulin made history by becoming the first hockey player to score a goal in four straight Olympic finals. Among the silverware in her trophy cabinet are a total of 15 medals earned at international competitions, among which are three Olympic gold medals.

Poulin scored the gold medal-winning goals for Canada at the 2010 Vancouver Games and 2014 Sochi Games as well as at the 2022 Beijing Games, where she scored twice in order to hand Canada a 3-2 victory over the United States.

The post Marie-Philip Poulin Joins Canadiens as Consultant appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Martin St. Louis has been named head coach of the Montreal Canadiens, signing a three-year contract extension through the 2024-25 season. The 32nd head coach in the franchise’s history, St. Louis was hired as the team’s interim coach last season despite lacking coaching experience.

St. Louis was brought in on February 9, 2022, to replace previous head coach Dominique Ducharme who was fired after the Canadiens went from appearing in the Stanley Cup final in 2021 to last place in the NHL standings in 2021-22 with a record of 8-30-7.

“During his short stint behind the bench last season, Martin showed he has the required qualities to lead the Canadiens in the right direction,” Canadiens vice president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton said as part of a statement released by the team. Gorton previously approached St. Louis in an attempt to sign him as head coach for the New York Rangers’ minor league affiliate in Hartford.

Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes supported Gorton’s views, explaining that St. Louis exhibited the qualities that were necessary to pull the team out of their challenging predicament and return them to form.

The post St. Louis Named Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Following Interim Role appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens have already confirmed during the offseason that their captain Shea Weber won’t return to the ice in the 2021-22 NHL season due to a number of injuries he is dealing with. But it now seems that Weber’s health status is even worse than it was originally believed. 

Speaking with reporters earlier this week, the Canadiens general manager confirmed that Weber’s future as a professional hockey player is in doubt and said it is a “long shot” that the 36-year-old resumes his career in NHL.

“I think it’s a long shot,” Bergevin said. “You never know, but I would say it’s a long shot.”

Weber is reportedly dealing with lingering foot, ankle, thumb, and knee injuries that accumulated over the years. The veteran defenseman managed to play while hurt last season, helping the Canadiens to reach the Stanley Cup Finals, but that apparently came at a great cost.

Without Weber in their lineup, the Canadiens look nothing like the team that was close to winning it all just several months ago. Montreal lost all of their first four games of the 2021-22 season and conceded 15 goals compared to just three scored.

Shea Weber joined the Canadiens ahead of the 2016-17 season after spending the first 11 years of his career with the Nashville panthers. Webber, who collected seven All-Star nods while in the league, has 1,038 career NHL regular-season games in which he scored 224 goals and dished 365 assists.

The post Canadiens GM Calls Shea Weber Return “Long Shot” appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens have inked their center Nick Suzuki to a new eight-year extension. The team announced the news and revealed that the 22-year-old star will earn $63 million between 2022-23 and 2029-30.

Suzuki is currently in the final year of the entry-level deal he signed with the Vegas Golden Knights back in 2017. He arrived in Montreal in 2018 in a trade that sent the team’s captain Max Pacioretty to Las Vegas.

“We are very happy to secure Nick’s services for the next eight seasons,” said general manager Marc Bergevin in a brief statement.

Canadiens had an easy decision ahead of them as Suzuki proved to be a great addition to the team ever since he made his NHL debut in 2019-20. He played 71 games in his rookie season, contributing with 13 goals and 28 assists for a total of 41 points. This earned him an All-Rookie Team selection.

In his second year as a pro, Nick Suzuki also had 41 points (15 goals and 26 assists) but needed only 56 games to get there. He was especially impressive in the playoffs, scoring seven goals and dishing nine assists as the Canadiens reached the Stanley Cup Finals.

The post Canadiens Ink Nick Suzuki to 8-Year, $63 Million Contract appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Claude Julien’s stint as head coach for the Montreal Canadiens has officially come to an end. General manager Marc Bergevin confirmed the news on Wednesday, stating the following:

“I would like to sincerely thank Claude and Kirk for their contributions to our team over the past five years during which we worked together. I have great respect for these two men whom I hold in high regard,” said Bergevin announcing the decision.

In a social media farewell statement on Twitter, Bergevin also called Julien a “true pro”. Clearly this wasn’t a bad breakup, with other factors weighing in on the Montreal front office’s decision.

The Canadiens started off this season strongly with a 7-3 record, but then teetered over the next phase. Out of the following eight games, they only managed to win two of them. This is likely the reason for Julien’s firing.

In Julien’s place, assistant coach Dominique Ducharme will now serve as interim head coach. It’s unclear whether or not this interim spot will turn into something permanent, but perhaps that’ll depend on the team’s performance.

Although Julien was fired, he’s still a respectable coach in the league, and we wouldn’t be surprised if he’s hired by another team in the coming years.

The post Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Claude Julien Fired appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Veteran forward Tyler Toffoli will remain in Canada despite failing to agree to a new deal with Vancouver Canucks. On Monday, Montreal Canadiens announced that they have signed Toffoli to a four-year contract.

Toffoli will earn $4.25 million annually, with his deal being worth a total of $17 million.

Toffoli joined the Canucks in a trade with Los Angeles Kings in February but managed to play just 10 games with the organization before NHL stopped the regular season due to a coronavirus outbreak. The 28-year-old then missed three weeks of the playoffs due to an ankle injury but managed to get on the ice for the majority of the Western Conference semifinals.

On multiple previous occasions, Tyler Toffoli stated that he wants to remain in Vancouver and commit to a long-term deal. However, once the Canadiens came with an offer Canucks didn’t want to match, Toffoli didn’t have a hard time deciding what to do next.

Toffoli spent the majority of his career with the Kings, being part of the 2014 team that won the Stanley Cup. He has 525 career games in NHL in which he scored 145 goals and dished 155 assists. 

The post Canadiens Sign Forward Tyler Toffoli to a 4-Year, $17 Million Deal appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Montreal Canadiens didn’t waste their time locking Joel Edmundson to a new deal after recently trading with Carolina Hurricanes to get him. The Canadiens confirmed on Thursday that Edmundson inked an extension with the team that runs for the next four seasons.

Edmundson’s extension is worth $14 million and comes with a $3.5 million annual salary. The 27-year-old defensman was set to become a free agent after the 2019/20 NHL season.

Canadiens acquired Edmundson less than a week ago, sending a 2020 fifth-round pick to Carolina to get him. He is viewed by the organization as a potential key piece on defense, which is why they decided to hammer out a long-term deal as soon as possible.

The St. Louis Blues handed out Edmundson his NHL debut during the 2015/16 season, and he quickly became a regular part of the team’s lineup. He played 269 games in the next four years, contributing with 52 points (13 goals, 39 assists) and helped the franchise win Stanley Cup in 2019.

The Blues traded Edmundson to the Hurricanes prior to the start of 2019/20, and he ended up responding with a career-best campaign. He finished the regular season by playing 68 games and having seven goals and 13 assists for a career-high 20 points.

The post Joel Edmundson Extends with Canadiens, Will Earn $3.5 Million Annually appeared first on SportzBonanza.