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Canadiens Place Gustav Lindstrom On Waivers

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The Montreal Canadiens have placed defenseman Gustav Lindstrom on waivers. The 25-year-old has appeared in 14 games with Montreal this season, scoring three goals and four points while averaging just over 15 minutes of ice time. He is one of eight defenders currently on Montreal’s roster, sharing the role of extra defenseman with Johnathan Kovacevic.

Lindstrom is in his fifth NHL season, making his debut with the  Red Wings during the 2019-20 season – the same year he came over from Sweden’s Frolunda HC. Detroit selected Lindstrom with the 38th-overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, just one pick before the Dallas Stars selected Jason Robertson, who has become an emphatic scorer with 118 goals and 274 points in 249 career games. He moved to the Canadiens organization in mid-August, joining the team alongside a 2025 fourth-round pick in exchange for Jeff Petry, who has since gone on to record 11 points and a +2 in 31 games with the Red Wings.

Lindstrom has been out of the Canadiens lineup since December 9th, when he recorded a -1 and one penalty in a shootout win over the Buffalo Sabres. The defenseman cleared waivers on October 8th, starting the season with the AHL’s Laval Rocket before he was brought up as an emergency recall in late October. He spent one more week in the minors in early November before sticking around the Canadiens lineup for the last two months. Lindstrom has played in four AHL games this year, going without a point but recording one penalty and a -6. He will likely look to add to those stats if he clears waivers once again.

Evening Notes: Campbell, Okposo, Beck, Donovan

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The Edmonton Oilers are planning to shop around goaltender Jack Campbell as the trade deadline approaches, general manager Ken Holland tells The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun. But LeBrun doesn’t think there will be many suitors for Campbell’s $5MM cap hit ahead of the deadline, speculating that the team will instead have to wait until the summer to decide what to do with the netminder – whether that’s a buyout or trade.

Campbell’s time in Edmonton has certainly not gone as expected. The 31-year-old is in his second team with the club, after signing a five-year, $25MM contract with the club. He lost the starter job to Calder Trophy finalist Stuart Skinner last season, setting a 21-9-4 record and .888 save percentage through 36 games with the team. But he was only allowed five games with the Oilers this year, putting up a meager .873 save percentage before being placed on waivers and sent to the minor leagues. He’s since made 11 appearances with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors, setting a 5-6-0 record and .893 save percentage.

Campbell was a productive goaltender in the two years he spent playing significant time for the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier in his career but hasn’t looked the same since moving across Canada. His status will be one of the Oilers’ biggest questions to answer this summer.

More notes from around the league:

  • Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo returned to the team’s practices on Monday, working his way back from a lower-body injury that’s held him out of the team’s last two games. Okposo is still designated as day-to-day but is nearing a return. He’s managed 14 points in 38 games this season – his 17th NHL season.
  • Polarizing Montreal Canadiens prospect Owen Beck has had his rights traded in the OHL, moving from the Peterborough Petes to the Saginaw Spirit. Saginaw sent Aiden Young and three draft picks the other way. Beck has managed 30 points in 25 points with Peterborough this season, adding one goal in five games at the World Juniors. He went 33rd overall to the Canadiens in the 2022 NHL Draft.
  • The Ottawa Senators also had a prospect moved to Saginaw, as the Spirit acquired defenseman Jorian Donovan from the Brantford Bulldogs. Saginaw sent eight draft picks the other way, including two second-round picks and four third-round picks. Donovan has 28 points in 34 OHL games this season and also attended the World Juniors, though he went scoreless in all five Team Canada games. He was a fifth-round selection in 2022.

Christian Dvorak Out For Season With Torn Pectoral Muscle

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Canadiens forward Christian Dvorak will miss the remainder of the 2023-24 season with a torn pectoral muscle, the team announced Thursday. The injury will require surgery, which Dvorak will undergo tomorrow.

It’s another long-term injury for a Canadiens team that’s no stranger to having players out of the lineup for long stretches of the season. After leading the league in man-games lost last year, Montreal lost young top-six forward Kirby Dach to a season-ending knee injury just two games into the campaign. They’ve also been without the services of defenseman Chris Wideman for the whole season up to this point with a back injury, and Jordan Harris, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Alex Newhook, and David Savard have all missed significant chunks of the campaign.

The Habs’ 16-16-5 record and sixth-place standing in the Atlantic Division is better than some expected, but Dvorak hasn’t been a major factor in their return to relevancy. The 27-year-old hasn’t been the bona fide second-line center the Canadiens expected to get when they acquired him from the Coyotes days before the 2021-22 season began. Dating back to his acquisition, he’s played in 145 games and notched 24 goals for the Canadiens, adding 44 assists for 68 points. That works out to a rather underwhelming points-per-game pace of 0.47.

Dvorak began this season on long-term injured reserve while he was still recovering from knee surgery that prematurely ended his 2022-23 campaign last March. After missing ten games, Dvorak returned to the lineup in early November, scoring just three times in the 25 games since. While he won nearly 60% of his draws during his stint in the lineup this year, a career-high, Dvorak’s ice time also dipped below the 16-minute average mark for the first time in five years.

Unfortunately, the writing is on the wall for his potential as an everyday top-six forward in the NHL. He last played on December 30, recording a -1 rating in a 4-1 loss to the Panthers. He missed the following two games with what the team termed an upper-body injury.

In Dvorak’s absence, the Canadiens have dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen, though don’t expect that to continue long-term. The Canadiens will need to recall a forward from AHL Laval to fill his spot in the top nine, or just wait for the returns of Harvey-Pinard and Tanner Pearson from their respective lower-body and upper-body injuries, which are both expected before the end of the month.

If they do look to Laval for help on offense in the short term, there are a handful of young candidates who could use a two- or three-week trial. 22-year-old Swedish winger Emil Heineman could get another bump to the NHL roster after being recalled for two weeks last month, playing his first two NHL games in the process. An injury cost him a solid chunk of the early portion of the season in Laval, although he does have two goals and six points in ten games there. 2021 fifth-round pick Joshua Roy remains tied for the team lead in goals with ten through 30 games, although the team seems content to keep the 20-year-old in the minors all season to adapt to the pro game despite his strong rookie showing on the scoresheet.

Even Dvorak’s overall two-way performance in his abbreviated 2023-24 showing was cause for concern. He spent most of his time in the lineup centering Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky on the team’s top line, and while his aforementioned faceoff skills were strong, the trio’s success at controlling play was not. Out of four Montreal forward lines with more than 100 minutes together this season, the Caufield-Dvorak-Slakovsky line’s expected goal share of 44.3% ranks dead last, per MoneyPuck. When Caufield and Slafkovsky have been centered by Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki this season, meanwhile, that trio has posted an expected goals share of 60.2% – quite a notable swing for swapping out just one player.

Dvorak has not yet been returned to long-term injured reserve, but expect him to end up on IR or LTIR in the near future if the Canadiens need roster and/or salary cap space. He remains under contract through the 2024-25 season at a cap hit of $4.45MM and carries an eight-team no-trade list that kicked in at the beginning of this season, per CapFriendly.

Upper-Body Injury For Christian Dvorak

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  • Canadiens center Christian Dvorak is out indefinitely with an upper-body injury, relays Sportsnet’s Eric Engels (Twitter link). The 27-year-old is having a tough year offensively with just three goals and four assists through his first 25 games.  With Montreal only carrying 12 forwards on its roster – partially a byproduct of carrying three goalies – and being on the road, they will have to dress seven blueliners for their matchup against Tampa Bay tonight.

Canadiens Scratch Johnathan Kovacevic

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The Canadiens have been a popular team in trade talks lately. Veteran netminder Jake Allen is drawing significant interest from teams looking for help between the pipes, and their surplus of young defense prospects has made some think a move to clear space is coming sooner rather than later. Some have discussed veteran David Savard as being the odd man out, but notably, shutdown specialist Johnathan Kovacevic was a healthy scratch in Thursday’s game against the Hurricanes upon Jordan Harris’ return from injury.

Kovacevic is, by most accounts, the Canadiens’ most adept chance-limiting defender. Acquired via waiver claim from the Jets early in the 2022-23 season, Kovacevic has gone from unknown rearguard to Canadiens blueline staple in a relatively short amount of time. However, as his five points through 33 games suggest, he’s not much of a two-way threat. In all situations, nearly 76.7% of his zone starts have been in the defensive end this season, way up even from last season’s 61.3% mark. At even strength, that number still skews conservative with a defensive zone start percentage of 70.

Even still, Kovacevic could carry some significant trade value if the Canadiens decide he’s on the outside looking in on their long-term core. His expected plus-minus rating of +1.9 is the highest among active Montreal defenders this season, and he averages 2:39 per game on the penalty kill. Toss in the fact that he’s a highly-coveted right-shot defenseman, and you have a player a contending team would love to pick up for the low cost of $767K against the cap at the trade deadline.

Trade Market Heating Up For Jake Allen

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Speaking last night on NHL Network, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that the trade market is heating up considerably around Montreal Canadiens goaltender, Jake Allen. With plenty of competitive teams dealing with poor play and injuries between the pipes, Allen has been an oft-rumored trade candidate throughout much of the year.

In the report, Pagnotta indicates that before the roster freeze went into effect on December 19th, the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, and New Jersey Devils had all made contact with Canadiens’ brass to gauge the price tag on Allen. With another year left on his contract after this season, Allen’s salary is set at $3.85MM, meaning any acquiring team will likely need to move around funds to acquire him.

At any rate, all signs indicate that Allen’s career in Montreal is coming to an end, as the organization appears comfortable moving forward with Sam Montembeault as the start, and Cayden Primeau serving as the primary backup. In 12 games this season, Allen has produced a very modest 4-6-2 record, carrying a .907 SV% and a 3.43 GAA.

Even though Allen had seen his name pop up in rumors dating back to last summer, the Canadiens handed a three-year, $9.45MM contract extension to Montembeault, effectively ending any chance that Allen would stay in Montreal beyond this season. Even aside from both Montembeault and Primeau already on the NHL roster, the team is still prepared to introduce 2023 draft pick, Jacob Fowler, within the next several years.

It is more than reasonable for all three teams mentioned to be interested as Carolina, Edmonton, and New Jersey are tied for last place in the NHL in SV% as a team, sitting a .879. Currently, Carolina is the only one of the three currently in a playoff position, sitting in the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, while both Edmonton and New Jersey are on the outside looking in.

Regardless of interest, it will be more difficult to ascertain the price point for Allen, given his current contract and his status as a backup goaltender. With teams having less financial ability during the season, the last time a similar goaltender was traded was on September 19th, with the Canadiens shipping Casey DeSmith to the Vancouver Canucks for Tanner Pearson and a third-round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft.

If Allen does ultimately end up with one of the three teams listed by Pagnotta, all three of them will likely need to move salary the other way, as currently, none would be able to assume the contract of Allen outright.

Canadiens Activate Jordan Harris Off Injured Reserve

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The Canadiens activated defenseman Jordan Harris off injured reserve Thursday, per a team release. To stay under the 23-player roster limit, Montreal returned winger Emil Heineman to AHL Laval in a corresponding transaction.

Harris is projected to return to the lineup tonight against the Hurricanes in a third-pairing role alongside Jayden Struble, reuniting a pair of former Northeastern University teammates. He missed 15 games with a lower-body injury sustained just one game after returning from an upper-body injury that sidelined him for two contests.

The 23-year-old Harris is in the first season of a two-year, $2.8MM extension signed with Montreal last February. Through 16 games this season before his injuries, Harris logged three assists and a -7 rating while averaging 18:44 per game.

Advanced metrics label the 5-foot-11 American as a slightly below-average defender, posting a 46% Corsi share at even strength that exceeds only Kaiden Guhle and Gustav Lindström among Canadiens defensemen this season. He’s still got a few seasons ahead of him to continue his development, however, and there remains optimism that he can break away from the Canadiens’ large group of mid-tier defense prospects to lock down a top-four role by the time he reaches restricted free agency again in 2025.

Meanwhile, Heineman returns to the minors after making his first NHL appearances late last week in back-to-back games. Averaging only 7:50 in road tilts against the Blackhawks and Wild, Heineman failed to take a shot on goal but recorded two hits and a +1 rating. The 22-year-old will continue his development in Laval, with whom he has one goal and four points in seven games this season. Heineman missed most of October and all of November with an injury.

Canadiens Notes: Savard, Lindström, Monahan

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On an extraordinarily young Montreal Canadiens blueline, veteran David Savard has played a crucial role. The defensive stability he provides on the ice has paved the way for Mike Matheson to play the best hockey of his career, and his 21:26 time-on-ice (including a team-leading 3:40 per game short-handed) has helped the Canadiens achieve a better-than-expected start. But despite how much value he is delivering to Montreal, Sportsnet’s Eric Engels writes in his most recent mailbag that the Canadiens are “going to have to seriously consider moving” Savard “in short order.”

The rationale behind trading Savard is twofold: first and foremost, he could very well return a premium draft pick or prospect due to his quality play, the fact that he’s a Stanley Cup-winning right-shot defenseman, and the fact that he’s affordable for the rest of this season and under team control for $3.5MM for 2024-25. Additionally, the emergence of Jayden Struble combined with the need to re-integrate Jordan Harris and Arber Xhekaj into the NHL lineup means trading Savard would clear room needed by those players. And it would also be useful with an eye to the team signing top prospect Lane Hutson after his NCAA season concludes. So while Savard is an extremely important defenseman for the Canadiens now, it appears his days in Montreal could be numbered.

Some other notes regarding the 24-time Stanley Cup Champions:

  • Since the Canadiens’ upcoming defensive logjam could very well cause David Savard to be traded, it also indicates that Gustav Lindström is unlikely to maintain his spot on the NHL roster with the Canadiens for much longer. According to Engels, the Canadiens are likely to waive or trade Lindström whenever Harris returns. The 25-year-old was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings this offseason and has scored four points in 14 games, averaging 15:16 time-on-ice per game. He has played four games for the AHL’s Laval Rocket this season and could soon become available to the rest of the NHL once again.
  • Up front, the number-one Canadiens trade candidate is center Sean Monahan. It must be said that a significant factor impacting Monahan’s trade future is his health, as the seven-time 20-plus goal scorer has suffered significant injuries in recent years. According to Engels, the Canadiens have not yet “concretely discussed an extension” with Monahan, and he could be one of the top forwards available on the market come trade deadline season.

Prospect Quentin Miller To Be Traded In QMJHL

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  • The trade deadline is fast approaching in the CHL and several NHL-drafted prospects will be on the move in the next couple of weeks. One of those appears to be Canadiens goaltender Quentin Miller as Kevin Dube of the Journal de Quebec reports that Miller will be moved to QMJHL Rimouski on Friday.  The 19-year-old was a fourth-round pick back in June and has a 3.05 GAA and a .901 SV% with Quebec so far.  Even though the trade has been agreed to in principle, Miller is expected to make one more start prior to the swap.

Mitchell Stephens Now Waiver-Eligible Again

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  • Canadiens center Mitchell Stephens played in his tenth game of the year Friday against Chicago. This means that he will have to pass through waivers in order to return to the minors.  Stephens cleared waivers back in the preseason but was recalled at the beginning of the month.  He has a goal in those ten appearances while winning a little over 55% of his faceoffs.

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