July 19, 2025
On Wednesday, the Montreal Canadiens announced they had signed a one-year one-way contract with forward Joe Veleno. The contract comes with a $900K annual average value, which is a nice price for a depth forward.
The Habs needed to replace some depth.
Several bottom six forwards have left Montreal. Michael Pezzetta did not see much ice this past year, and moved on hoping to land better than a 13th forward role. Joel Armia had priced himself out of Montreal with his penalty kill prowess. Christian Dvorak found a new contract in a weak centreman market. Emil Heineman was sacrificed to land Noah Dobson.
When Mat Darche didn’t want Logan Mailloux in the Dobson trade, Kent Hughes found someone who did. He dealt Mailloux to St. Louis for Zachary Bolduc, a player with the same skill set as Heineman but with more offensive upside. An upgrade, you might say.
There are plenty of kids who can replace Pezzetta for 25 games, but no one wants a prospect languishing in the press box for the other 57. Sammy Blais is a great option to play 13th forward, and if he draws in against a physical team, he can handle that role better than Pezzetta. An upgrade, in that regard.
Hughes chose not to re-sign Armia at what ended up being a very reasonable cap hit. Why? Armia has peaked. What if they could bring in a younger player who can kill penalties while bringing a little more offensive potential? That might be Veleno. Minimally, he can fill the role while they wait for a kid to claim the spot. And for that price, the upgrade may be getting the role filled for less cap, so that the space can be used on the top six.
The Habs needed a left shot who could take a draw.
Let’s be clear. The Habs are not looking for a replacement for Christian Dvorak. They’re looking for an upgrade. On a good team, Dvorak is a 3C, and the Habs have options to fill that role. They need a legitimate second line centreman, and they’d prefer he was a left shot. But while they wait for him, someone has to take a draw.
The coaching staff reportedly have all of their forwards working with faceoff specialist Marc Bureau to increase their efficiency. We have heard from Bolduc that he has already been told to work on this area, and in Veleno they have another left shot option.
The Habs need more Cs to play in their forward group.
The Florida Panthers just won the Stanley Cup with eight players listed as centremen. Obviously, only four of them played C on any given night, but they had eight guys who could play pivot. That means four of eight wingers with C capacity.
There is no such thing as too many centres. Having multiple guys in your forward group who can play C is a recipe for success.
It would be amazing if Kirby Dach broke out this season and became the 2C they need. But if he doesn’t, it never hurts to have a winger who can play down the middle if they need him to. Surely one of Veleno, Alex Newhook, Oliver Kapanen, Owen Beck, or Florian Xhekaj can claim a bottom six centre role with Jake Evans. The others will have to be wingers who can play centre if they stay in Montreal. This is a very good thing.
The Habs need to keep looking for a 2C.
Joe Veleno is a patch and everyone, including Joe Veleno, knows it. But he’s still young, and if he can find his niche in Montreal, that will be gravy.
Veleno, like Blais signed before him, will not clog a space for any prospect who proves he’s ready to make the jump. They can waive either or both players and send them to Laval if they clear.
Likewise, no one is waiting for Veleno to be the solution at 2C, or even an upgrade for the second line. HuGo will keep exploring every option to continue to improve the Habs. They know there is a hole to fill, and they know Veleno is a patch. But he’s a patch that allows them to be patient and not make a move they regret.
I’m still expecting an August trade. Whether it comes or doesn’t, neither outcome will make the Veleno signing regrettable. It’s a low risk move with potential for high reward.
Hab At Her 