It turns out that Nate Thompson won’t just be a rental player after all as the Canadiens announced on Thursday that he has signed a one-year, $1 million contract.

The final quarter of the season for Laval had some strong moments but overall, it wasn’t a great stretch. Despite that, a few members of the Rocket had strong finishes. Our grades for the final segment begin with the goalies and defencemen.

Although it proved to be for naught as the Habs fell just short of reaching the postseason, several forwards stepped up their play down the stretch and earned themselves high grades in the process.

It took a bit of time before Claude Julien put Christian Folin in the lineup but clearly, he made a positive impression. The Habs announced on Thursday that they signed the defenceman to a one-year, $800,000 contract extension.

While the Habs fell short of making the playoffs, they still had some strong performers for the stretch run. Our fourth quarter grades begin with the goalies and defencemen.

Last year, the Habs were one of the winners in the Draft Lottery, moving up a spot in the process. They weren’t as lucky this time around as they stayed pat as expected and hold the 15th pick in June.