The Montreal Canadiens have brought in multiple new players this off-season. Their two most notable additions, who they acquired from separate trades, are defenseman Noah Dobson and forward Zack Bolduc. Yet, they also brought in some new depth players this summer through free agency. 

On July 1, the Canadiens added to their goalie depth by signing netminder Kaapo Kahkonen to a one-year, $1.15 million contract. While this is one of the Canadiens' smaller moves of summer, it also has the potential to be a good one for the Original Six club. 

With this addition, the Canadiens have brought in another goalie with a good amount of NHL experience. This is certainly not a bad thing, as NHL teams can never have enough experienced depth between the pipes. Furthermore, Kahkonen now also offers them another potential option for their backup goalie spot if they feel youngster Jakub Dobes would benefit from more time in the AHL.

Yet, even if Kahkonen ends up starting the season in the AHL with the Laval Rocket, he will still be a good goalie to have around. He would have the potential to help out Laval tremendously and would also be a clear call-up candidate for the Canadiens when injuries arise.

Thus, there is truly no risk in this minor move for the Habs, and it will be fascinating to see how much of an impact Kahkonen can make next season from here. 

New Canadiens Star Should Be Perfect FitEarlier this off-season, the Montreal Canadiens made a significant trade. They acquired star defenseman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders in exchange for forward Emil Heineman and picks Nos. 16 and 17 of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft. The Canadiens then immediately made Dobson a long-term part of their future, as they signed him to an eight-year, $76 million contract.

Photo Credit: © James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images

Just under a week before the two sides were scheduled for saiary arbitration, the Buffalo Sabres and defenseman Conor Timmins agreed on a two-year, $4.4 million contract extension. The 26-year-old blueliner was acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins in a deal for veteran Connor Clifton and the Sabres 2025 second-round pick on day 2 of the NHL Draft last month. 

The St. Catharines, ON native coming off a 15-point season with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Penguins (3 goals, 12 assists) in 68 games was expected to get a slight raise from the $1.1 million salary he made last season, but with the cap going up and the Sabres buying an unrestricted free agent year, Timmins salary doubled to an AAV of $2.2 million. That amount is still $1.1 million less than Clifton’s 2025-26 salary.    

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Timmins ranks fifth in salary on the Sabres blueline, behind team captain Rasmus Dahlin ($11 million), Owen Power ($8.35 million), Bowen Byram ($6.25 million), and Mattias Samuelsson ($4.285 million), and ahead of the recently acquired Michael Kesselring ($1.4 million), Jacob Bryson and Zac Jones ($900,000). Although he will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer, Sabres GM Kevyn Adams may try to be proactive and try to get Kesselring extended, after he was the main piece in the trade that sent JJ Peterka to Utah.

The signing of Timmins leaves the Sabres with one remaining restricted free agent in goalie Devon Levi. The 23-year-old is not arbitration-eligible and cannot be signed to an offer sheet, but after spending the last one-and-a-half seasons in AHL Rochester and the signing of veteran Alex Lyon to a two-year contract earlier this month, there may begin to be some concern of how motivated Levi is to sign a new deal with Buffalo.  

 

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Apr 11, 2006; St. Louis, MO, USA; Nashville Predators forward Paul Kariya (9) skates up ice against the St. Louis Blues during the first period at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO. Mandatory Credit:Scott Rovak-Imagn Images Copyright © Scott Rovak

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Sep 19, 2006/vol. 60, issue 03

Nashville pull

Predators attracting prime free agents as Music City emerges as hockey hot spot

BY JOHN GLENNON

In the old days of NHL free agency, players generally considered one variable – money – when it came to signing with a new team.

While that’s still usually the case, the league’s salary cap has evened out many offers, meaning players also are looking for what makes them feel warm and fuzzy in addition to rich and famous.

The short-term result has seen the small-market Nashville Predators become somewhat surprising players in free agency during the past two off-seasons.

The trend began last summer when left winger Paul Kariya stunned the hockey world by choosing to sign with Nashville, continued this past June when center Jason Arnott picked the Preds and resumed last month when right winger J-P Dumont selected Music City over a number of other suitors.

Dumont signed a two-year deal that will pay him $2 million this season and $2.5 million in 2007-08.

“We had some offers, but I talked to (former Predator) Joel Bouchard, who played there a few years ago and he told me good things about the town and organization,” Dumont said. “He told me (Nashville) would be the best pick by far and he didn’t even know who the other teams were.

“He said those guys really know how to treat everybody as a family. I wanted to go somewhere where I feel wanted and welcome.”

Dumont, who became a free agent when Buffalo chose to walk away from a salary arbitration award of $2.9 million, was one of the last significant players on the open market.

Carolina also made a notable late addition by signing defenseman David Tanabe to a one-year, $900,000 deal, after Boston walked away from Tanabe’s arbitration award of $1.275 million.

With training camp fast approaching, only a few notable free agents remained; winger Anson Carter being the most prominent.

In Nashville, management and coaches were excited over the arrival of Dumont, who has scored at least 20 goals in four of his past five seasons.

“I thought our forwards were (already) good and now in my mind they’re the best forwards we’ve ever had,” said Preds GM David Poile.

Nashville also was pleased with its growing reputation as a players’ choice destination. Arnott’s signing process, for instance, actually began when his agent asked Poile why the Predators hadn’t been inquiring about Arnott, explaining Arnott had Nashville on his wish list.

Dumont seemed equally enthusiastic about his move.

“His interest was as great, if not more, than ours from that standpoint,” Poile said. “It points out two things: We’re a very competitive team and the city of Nashville is a great place to play.”

Daniel Brown, the lawyer for former Ottawa Senator Alex Formenton, made a statement to the media this week after his client was found not guilty of sexual assault charges. Formenton and four other members of the 2018 Canadian World Junior Team were accused of sexual assault by a then 20-year-old woman in a London, Ontario hotel room.

Brown said in his statement that London Police "got it right" when they first investigated this case seven years ago and decided then not to lay charges against Formenton.  Brown asserts that it was political and media pressure that brought the case back into the spotlight, and the Crown Attorney knowingly forged ahead with a hopeless prosecution.

Here is Brown's full statement:

Alex Formenton was barely 18 years old, on the verge of a promising hockey career that came to a screeching halt on June 18th, 2018, after what was meant to be a night of celebration with coaches in two minutes.

For the last seven years, he's lived under a dark cloud.

The public now knows what Alex has always maintained, that he is completely innocent of this false allegation. But only after his case has erupted into a massively publicized social cause.

Alex's face has appeared on millions of screens and newspaper pages, and there can be little doubt that an untold number of people out there believed he was guilty simply because he was accused of a crime, long before any evidence was presented in court.

This rush to judgment, to believe the worst of people, is one of the most regrettable of human traits. So, too, is our reluctance to change that opinion, even when it's proven wrong, after a full and fair trial.

Notwithstanding, just as Justice Carroccia’s unequivocal exoneration of Alex today, there will inevitably be those who will still believe he committed a crime.

Nobody in room 209 that night has emerged unscarred from this event. The criminal court process is a bruising experience for everyone, but never more than when a case's high profile incorporates such high stakes.

In Alex's case, he was condemned and felt banished from society. This experience for him has been crushing. Nonetheless, the impact of this case has changed Alex as a person, and he's matured well beyond his years.

It is inevitable that some people will not forgive Alex for what he was accused of doing. Others, however, will understand that this tragic matter rightly comes to an end today.

Alex has never minimized his role in the sexual encounter, or denied engaging in consensual sexual activity with the complainant. He fully cooperated with the police investigation, and provided investigators with a complete account of his behavior back in 2018.

Alex's narrative isn't conjecture. His police statement was corroborated at trial by several crown witnesses, by video evidence, and was even supported in large measure by the complainant’s evidence herself.

Even Justice Carroccia said today that she accepted that Alex told the truth in that police statement. And while no police investigation is perfect, the London police got it right seven years ago when they decided it would be a mistake to charge Alex.

The evidence always demonstrated that he didn't commit a sexual assault. However, political and media pressure brought this allegation back into the spotlight in 2022, and the Crown Attorney knowingly forged ahead with a hopeless prosecution.

Besides the human toll on everyone involved, this lengthy legal process exhausted valuable resources that could have been deployed elsewhere in the justice system, but were lost here.

Alex, his family, and his defense team are grateful to Justice Carroccia for her careful consideration of all the evidence that was presented at this trial. She's reached a just and correct verdict that must be respected.

Nobody disputes that sexual assault is a terrible societal plague, and Alex sincerely hopes that this prosecution doesn't stop the quest to combat sexual violence and to bring genuine offenders to justice.

However, an accusation is just that, an accusation. This case stands to the fact that we must never lose sight of the fundamental right to be presumed innocent. Now more than ever before, a fair response to sexual assault claims requires a balanced perspective and public trust in the decision-making of the courts.

Anything less only harms the justice system and the cause of eliminating sexual violence.

---

The complainant's lawyer, Karen Bellehumeur, said on Thursday her client was very disappointed with the judge's evaluation of the evidence, which the judge described as not credible or reliable.

"When a person summons the courage to disclose their story, the worst possible outcome is to feel disbelieved. It's a gutting experience that no one deserves. That's why today's verdict is so devastating. E.M. did everything in her power to recount her experience honestly and to the best of her ability.

"She agreed to do everything asked of her by the criminal justice system. She spoke to the police whenever requested, she reviewed her evidence, she prepared her testimony, she answered every question, she spoke with intelligence and from her heart.

"Yet it was not enough."

---

It's not clear yet whether Formenton will now attempt to resume a pro hockey career. The 26-year-old is an RFA whose playing rights are still held by the Senators. The CBC reported that there are court documents that indicate Formenton has embarked on a career in construction and has moved on from hockey. Whether his acquittal alters those plans remains to be seen.

If he does decide to return to hockey, he could return to play professionally in Switzerland, where he spent parts of two recent seasons, or somewhere else in Europe, the NHL says all five players remain ineligible to play in their league until they can thoroughly review the judge's findings.

The NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) has issued a statement saying that Formenton, Dillon Dubé, Cal Foote, Carter Hart, and Michael McLeod should be ruled eligible to play, particularly after they’ve already missed more than a full season. The union also raised concerns that the findings could be inconsistent with the disciplinary procedures outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa

This article orginally appeared at The Hockey News Ottawa, where you'll find all the latest Senators news:
2018 World Junior Trial Ends: Former Senator Alex Formenton Found Not Guilty
Croatia's NHL Trailblazer: Sens Prospect Bruno Idžan Takes NHL Road Less Travelled
Can The Senators Count On Dylan Cozens To Consistently Produce?
Senators Re-Sign 2021 First-Round Pick To One-Year Deal
Why Mason McTavish Isn’t Coming Home To The Senators