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Montreal Canadiens make final cuts, announce 23-man roster

Apr 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield (22) and teammates defenseman Lane Hutson (48) and forward Juraj Slafkovsky (20) after a game against the Detroit Red Wings at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

The Canadiens have whittled down the roster on Monday, getting to the 23-player maximum ahead of their opening game versus the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday.

No players were placed on waivers to achieve that limit. Michael Pezzetta, who has spent the past two years in the NHL, Alex Barré-Boulet, who was signed in free agency this summer, and defenceman Justin Barron, who had spent time on the top pairing alongside Mike Matheson at various points in the past two years, are all on the final roster.

The Canadiens have decided to keep Oliver Kapanen rather than loan him to Timrå IK of the SHL after the forward had a strong camp. Joshua Roy, the player who could have taken that spot instead, was reassigned to the AHL with Emil Heineman starting the season on the roster.

Adam Engström has been reassigned to the Rocket after he surprised a lot of people unfamiliar with his game in training camp. Logan Mailloux is also on his way back to the minors. Both defencemen quarterbacked the Habs’ power-play units last night in the final pre-season game, and will be called upon to do the same in the AHL this year.

Goaltender Jakub Dobes was sent to Laval after he spent the full camp with the Habs, getting two games in that time. He will be Laval’s starter and expected to play the vast majority of the games this year.

Lane Hutson essentially made the team with his play at the end of last season and only solidified that with his pre-season performance. He joins Kapanen and Heineman.

It is important to note than there may be salary-cap considerations in this list. The organization will want to maximize the Long-Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) space it can gain when Carey Price is placed in that category, and that means trying to get as close to the upper salary-cap limit as possible. It could be that a move or two is made after this official announcement and before the first game of the season.

These are the 23 players who have made the 2024-25 Montreal Canadiens (rookies listed in bold):

Forwards (14)

  • Josh Anderson
  • Joel Armia
  • Alex Barré-Boulet
  • Cole Caufield
  • Kirby Dach
  • Christian Dvorak
  • Jake Evans
  • Emil Heineman
  • Brendan Gallagher
  • Oliver Kapanen
  • Alex Newhook
  • Michael Pezzetta
  • Joshua Roy
  • Juraj Slafkovsý
  • Nick Suzuki

Injured List: Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Patrik Laine

Defencemen (7)

  • Justin Barron
  • Kaiden Guhle
  • Lane Hutson
  • Mike Matheson
  • David Savard
  • Jayden Struble
  • Arber Xhekaj

Goaltenders (2)

  • Samuel Montembeault
  • Cayden Primeau

Injured List: Carey Price

Montreal Canadiens projected opening-night lineup

Left Wing Centre Right Wing
#13 Cole Caufield #14 Nick Suzuki #20 Juraj Slafkovský
#35 Alex Newhook #77 Kirby Dach #51 Emil Heineman
#91 Oliver Kapanen #28 Christian Dvorak #11 Brendan Gallagher
#40 Joel Armia #71 Jake Evans #17 Josh Anderson
Left Defence Right Defence
#8 Mike Matheson #21 Kaiden Guhle
#48 Lane Hutson #58 David Savard
#72 Arber Xhekaj #52 Justin Barron
Starter Backup
#35 Samuel Montembeault #30 Cayden Primeau

Jared Book, Matt Drake, and Patrik Bexell discuss the roster cuts on Habsent Minded

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