2008-09 final roster: 33 players
*Andrei Markov, Alex Kovalev, Robert Lang, *Andrei Kostitsyn, Saku Koivu, *Tomas Plekanec, Alex Tanguay, *Roman Hamrlik, *Sergei Kostitsyn, *Maxim Lapierre, *Guillaume Latendresse, Tom Kostopoulos, *Matt D’ Agostini, Patrice Brisebois, Chris Higgins, *Josh Gorges, Steve Begin, Max Pacioretty (+M), Francis Bouillon, Mike Komisarek, Mathieu Dandenault, Mathieu Schneider, *Ryan O’ Byrne, *Kyle Chipchura, *Georges Laraques,*Gregory Stewart, Alex Henry (+M), *Glen Metropolit, Ben Maxwell (+M), *Yannick Weber, *Carey Price, *Jaroslav Halak, Marc Denis.
Dearly departed
6 players not returning from the previous 2007-08 season’s roster are Michael Ryder (signed as a FA with Boston July 1, 2008), Mark Streit (signed as a FA with New York Islanders July 1, 2008), Bryan Smolinski (signed with Port Huron IceHawks of the IHL), Mikhail Grabovski (traded to Toronto July 3, 2008), Garth Murray (claimed on waivers by Florida November 13, 2007), and Corey Locke (traded to Minnesota July 11, 2008).
2008-09 Players stats / Canadiens games / NHL Season Summary
April 7 – Canadiens trade F Cory Urquhart (-H) to Phoenix for F Olivier Latendresse (+H).
2008 Draft: 5 players selected
Rd 2 # 56 – Danny Kristo F (P) – U.S. Under 18 (USDP)
Rd 3 # 86 – Steve Quailer F (P) – Sioux City (USHL)
Rd 4 # 116 – Jason Missaien G (P) – Peterborough (OHL)
Rd 5 # 139 – Maxim Trunev F (P) – Cherepovets (Russia). Pick acquired in Calgary trade.
Rd 7 # 206 – Patrick Johnson F (P) – Wisconsin (WCHA)
June 20 – Canadiens acquire Alex Tanguay and 2008 5th round pick, F Maxim Trunev (P) from Calgary Flames for 2008 1st round (Greg Nemisz C) and 2009 2nd round pick (later traded to Colorado – Stefan Elliott D).
Free agency and season’s transactions
July 1 – Canadiens sign F Georges Laraque as a FA.
July 3 – Canadiens sign D Alex Henry (+MH) as a FA.
July 3 – Canadiens sign G Marc Denis (+MH) as a FA.
July 3 – Canadiens sign G Cedric Desjardins (+H) as a FA.
July 11 – Canadiens trade forward Corey Locke (-MH) to the Minnesota Wild for defenseman Shawn Belle (+H).
July 16 – Canadiens sign F Mike Glumac (+H) as a FA.
July 25 – Canadiens sign F Yanick Lehoux (+H) as a FA.
August 6 – Canadiens sign D Chad Anderson (+H) as a FA.
September 12 – Canadiens acquire Robert Lang from Chicago for 2010 2nd round pick.
November 11 – Canadiens sign F David Desharnais (+H) as a FA.
January 5 – Canadiens acquire D T.J. Kemp (+H) from Pittsburgh for conditional 2010 7th round pick.
February 16 – Canadiens acquire D Mathieu Schneider and a 3rd round draft pick (Joonas Nattinen) from Atlanta for 2009 2nd round pick (traded to Colorado) and 2010 3rd round picks.
February 26 – Canadiens trade F Steve Begin (-MH) to Dallas for D Doug Janik (+H).
February 27 – Canadiens claim F *Glen Metropolit off waivers from Philadelphia
March 9 – Gainey replaces Guy Carbonneau as head coach.
(*) denotes players currently on the Canadiens NHL roster.
(+H) denotes players currently on the Hamilton Bulldogs AHL roster.
(+HM) denotes players currently on the Hamilton roster who have played with Montreal.
(P) denotes prospects who have yet to sign a professional contract (NHL, AHL, or ECHL) with the organization.
(-M), (-H) and (-MH) denote players no longer in the organization who have played either in Montreal, Hamilton, or both.
(–) denotes a player who has never played in Montreal or Hamilton. The final group likely never signed a professional contract with the club and were simply not retained by the organization. A final tally of each category will follow these chronological yearly listings.
