The Montreal Canadiens made a swap of restricted free agents with the New York Rangers on June 26, exchanging defenceman William Trudeau for forward Brett Berard. The Habs have now signed Berard to to a one-year, two-way contract.
Les Canadiens s'entendent sur les termes d'un contrat d'une saison à deux volets avec l’attaquant Brett Berard.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) July 9, 2026
The Canadiens have agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way contract with forward Brett Berard.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/UhSi1Rxbqi
Berard split his time between the Rangers and their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, in 2024-25, netting a promising 10 points in 35 NHL games as a rookie. Last year, he only got into 13 games for the Rangers, and was held off the scoresheet entirely. Even at the AHL level he experienced a drop in production, slipping to 22 points from 23 despite playing 11 more games than the previous season.
He’s always been a scorer in his career, doing so in the USNTDP, at Providence College, and in his first two years in the minors, scoring 34 goals in 101 games in his first two years as a pro. The Canadiens, who also traded away Joshua Roy a few days after Berard was brought in, will hope the change of scenery rekindles a needed scoring touch for the Laval Rocket.
With some NHL experience over the past two years, Berard will be a recall option for the Canadiens, but probably just a stopgap solution in the event of an injury. Set to turn 24 just before the beginning of training camp, he will no doubt do his best to improve his outlook in the pre-season.
