The Habs have kicked off the start of free agency with a trade, sending defenceman Logan Mailloux to St. Louis in exchange for winger Zachary Bolduc.

The depth signings continue for the Habs on the opening day of free agency.  The team announced that they’ve signed forward Alex Belzile and defenceman Nate Clurman to one-year, two-way contracts.  

Montreal’s second signing of the free agent period is one that will bring them some physicality.  The team announced that they’ve signed winger Samuel Blais to a one-year, one-way contract worth $775,000.

After trading Cayden Primeau to Carolina on Monday, the Habs needed another goaltender in the system.  They added that on Tuesday, signing Kaapo Kahkonen to a one-year, one-way contract. 

While it was a little surprising that Cayden Primeau received a qualifying offer on Monday, his time with Montreal didn’t last much longer. The team announced that they’ve traded the goaltender to Carolina for a 2026 seventh-round pick.

The Habs entered Monday with nine players in need of a qualifying offer. They ultimately decided to keep five of them while four others will now become unrestricted free agents on Tuesday.

The Habs made a big splash at the draft, just not in terms of actually drafting players. Instead, they swung the biggest trade, acquiring Noah Dobson from the Islanders. Our writers offer up their thoughts on the swap.

The Habs were hoping to add a key piece to their roster this summer.  While it’s not a centre, they’ve done just that, acquiring him from the Islanders and signing him to an eight-year, $76 million contract.

This offseason is going to be a critical one for the Canadiens as they try to take another step forward in their rebuild. As a result, both Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes will have plenty to wade through to help the team do just that.

The upcoming draft was a key part of our latest podcast. Plus, there was talk about Lane Hutson’s Calder Trophy victory, centre targets for the Habs in free agency, and much more.