Perhaps inspired by the recent successes of a club winning in a city of casinos, the bosses of the Canadian have also chosen to bet on something.
The bet, in this case, is a fresh new contract for forward Sean Monahan, who will play next season with an extra US$1.985 million in his checking account. He could earn $15,000 in bonuses depending on the number of games played.
Monahan had already hinted that he didn’t want to take his gear bag out of the Bell Center, and here he is granted with this one-year contract. He could have gone to try his luck in the free agent market on July 1, but obviously that wasn’t a very attractive option for him.
As far as the Canadian’s decision-makers are concerned, the bet here is that of health. More specifically, the health of the principal concerned.
Because before falling in action on December 5 in Vancouver, due to a broken right foot and a groin injury, Sean Monahan had collected a solid 17 points in 25 games, and his game was obviously an inspiration to the rest of the club. It would be risky to claim that the Canadiens started losing when Monahan had to be absent, but at the same time, yes, the Canadiens started losing when Monahan had to be absent.
In all, the 28-year-old veteran had to miss the last 57 games of the season, before having to undergo groin surgery at the end of it.
“I played despite several injuries [last season], often a broken foot, he noted at the end of the season report in Brossard, in April. It was my choice. I really wanted to play this game in Calgary [against the Flames, December 1]. I played there for 10 years, it was circled on my calendar. I did it, it didn’t end well, but at least we won […] Of course I regret having played. But in the end, it was my decision. »
This contract is a bet for the Canadiens, so, but also, in a way, this agreement is a way for Monahan to bet on himself, hoping for a 2023-2024 season that could lead him to a bigger contract. in a year.
Recall that this former first-round choice of the Calgary Flames has already obtained a seven-year contract and 44.625 million in total in 2016. Worried about his state of health, the Flames passed him on to the Canadian last summer, with a conditional first-round pick in the 2025 draft. Before taking part in just 25 games last season, Monahan had to settle for 65 games in 2021-2022, then 50 games the previous season. His last full 82-game season was in 2016-17.
It now remains to try to read between the lines to understand what this new contract means in the wonderful world of the Canadian.
Leaving, the Canadian finds himself to be sold out at the center position. By adding Monahan to the roster for 2023-2024, the Montreal club finds itself with five center players, namely Nick Suzuki, Kirby Dach, Christian Dvorak and Jake Evans, not to mention Alex Belzile, who is still without a contract. There is probably at least one extra player here.
In the case of Dvorak, not to forget: he finds himself getting a no-trade clause (eight teams) in the last two years of his current contract, this season and the next.
Then, in such a setting, it is difficult to see how Pierre-Luc Dubois could land here, especially if he absolutely wants an eight-year contract.
It’s one thing to pretend that he wants to get out of Winnipeg and put on the CH jersey as soon as possible, but it’s quite another matter to make such a deal in reality, especially if Dubois would demand an annual salary. of more than 8 million dollars, as wanted by the many rumors that have been circulating about him for a few weeks.
In the meantime, Sean Monahan will have the opportunity to talk about all this, and perhaps also about life in general, during a press meeting which will take place on Wednesday.
