The Montreal Canadiens have chosen to not qualify Yannick Weber’s contract as a restricted free agent, instead allowing him to test the free agent market.
The 5’11 Swiss defenseman only played six games for the Canadiens last year, notching two assists, after playing in 60 games the year before. His time with the organization was pretty clearly near the end, and with the Habs being unable to find value for him in a trade, releasing him will free up a contract spot.
It will be interesting to see if another team takes a shot with Weber, who has put up 32 points in 115 NHL games while playing very limited minutes. He could be a cheap option for someone’s powerplay and, at 25, there’s still a bit of room for him to improve overall as a defenseman.
Can he play Top-6 minutes? It’s tough to know, but there were times over the last few years where Weber did not look out of place. Good luck to him in the future.
