Marc Dumont
Updated:
Here are the Montreal Canadiens and NHL news items you may have missed on Thursday.
Montreal Canadiens News
- By hiring Derek Lalonde, the Habs added an assistant coach who has a long history of immediately improving bad penalty kills. And the Canadiens certainly need help defensively. [Canadiens Analysis: Defensive Specialist Added To Coaching Staff]
- ICYMI: It’s time to rank the top Habs prospects, and as per tradition, we need your help. Voting takes just a few minutes, and once the rankings are established, we will publish in-depth profiles for all the top Canadiens prospects. [Canadiens Top 20 Prospect Rankings: 2026 Summer Fan Vote]
- A dearth of physical play in the playoffs was one of the driving forces behind the Gleb Pugachyov draft pick by the Canadiens. [Lack Of Physicality Led To Pugachyov Pick]
- The Canadiens made another significant signing! Jokes aside, freshly-acquired skater Brett Berard was offered a one-year, two-way contract by the Habs.
Les Canadiens s'entendent sur les termes d'un contrat d'une saison à deux volets avec l’attaquant Brett Berard.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) July 9, 2026
The Canadiens have agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way contract with forward Brett Berard.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/UhSi1Rxbqi
- Gleb.
Gleb pic.twitter.com/ytivsiRcSa
— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) July 9, 2026
- It’s always fun to remember the Canadiens have a bunch of players in the lineup that feel weird when they’re not playing or practicing hockey. That includes, of course, Ivan Demidov. He could barely wait for the Zamboni to start cleaning the surface before he hopped on the ice.
L’attaquant russe est véritablement un joueur exceptionnel. 🔥@DLCoulisses #GoHabsGo #Demidov #NHL pic.twitter.com/tAEj0j3rRA
— Patrick Guillet (@PatGuillet) July 9, 2026
- Speaking of players who have represented Russia at the international level, apparently Pugachyov can jump over two feet without much wind-up, which is rather impressive. Though I’d argue that doesn’t necessarily look like two feet, or perhaps, I’m not judging it correctly. Either way, keep up the good work. Gleb!
Habs prospect Gleb Pugachev at his off-season training in Russia 🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/cVjKZTOcM2
— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) July 9, 2026
Sportsnaut Network
- When caught up in the day-to-day grind, it’s easy to forget never to take life for granted. In a matter of moments, an ordinary day can turn into a terrifying ordeal — as it did for a family of four in Switzerland, until New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier came to the rescue. [New Jersey Devils]
- Now that we know the fate of Barrett Hayton, the summer buzz has died down a bit across the NHL. The New Jersey Devils stayed plenty busy, however. New GM Sunny Mehta moved some big chess pieces — re-upping captain Nico Hischier, bringing back Arseny Gritsyuk on a team-friendly deal, pulling in some veteran depth through trades, and shaking up the crease by moving out Jacob Markstrom. [New Jersey Devils]
- It was always going to be difficult for the Colorado Avalanche to truly assess what they had in their roster. For most of the 2025-26 season, they were the best team in the league and felt like an inevitable Stanley Cup finalist. [Colorado Avalanche]
