The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed goaltender Al Montoya to a two-year contract extension, the club announced Monday.
The Canadiens signed goaltender Al Montoya to a two-year contract extension on Monday. DETAILS -> https://t.co/OyRoQD9XE4 pic.twitter.com/ICpu30Ax0Z
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) January 2, 2017
Montreal Canadiens Re-Sign Al Montoya
Habs General Manager Marc Bergevin announced on Monday that the team had officially completed the extension deal. “We’re pleased with his work so far, and at 31 years old, he’s still young,” said Bergevin during a press conference on Monday. The deal is reported to pay Montoya an annual average value of $1.065 million, an increase from the $950,000 he currently makes.
“For us, in terms of the salary cap, the amount was right. He’s a good teammate, and he’s performed well. We’re happy,” Bergevin said. The Canadiens are Montoya’s fifth NHL team, as he has never been able to hold down a starting position anywhere as of yet. In 147 career games, Montoya holds a 59-44-20 record with a 2.61 GAA and .909 save percentage.
Montoya has been the Canadiens primary backup goaltender this season supporting starter Carey Price. Montoya currently holds a 4-4-2 record on the season while boasting a 2.74 goals-against average, and a .909% save percentage.
Expansion Draft Bait
With Habs signing Al Montoya to a two-year extension they have a goalie not named Carey Price eligible to be exposed in expansion draft
— Arpon Basu (@ArponBasu) January 2, 2017
With the inevitable 2017 expansion draft coming up for the league, the Canadiens now have two goaltenders under contract. This means that they can protect Price and expose Montoya for selection by the new Las Vegas Golden Knights, who will be choosing players from the current 30 teams.
This signing solves that problem for Montreal on leaving a goalie exposed. The other goalies currently under contract are Carey Price, who has a no movement clause, Charlie Lindgren, Zachary Fucale, and Michael McNiven. The latter three are all exempt from selection in the upcoming expansion draft.
The Montreal Canadiens currently sit first in the Atlantic Division with a 22-9-6 record on the season. They are set to play the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.
Main Photo:
