Montreal Canadiens Announce First Round Of Training Camp Cuts

The Montreal Canadiens have finally announced their first round of cuts from training camp, reducing the original number of players present from 59 to 32.

The team played four preseason games before making any decisions, though considering they invited 13 fewer players to camp than last season, the longer runway makes sense. Starting with a smaller list of legitimate players with NHL potential allowed them to offer more opportunities to key prospects, not to mention the chance for new lines to attempt to build chemistry prior to the start of the 2024-25 season.

Shortly after Saturday’s loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, prospects Owen Beck, Riley Kidney, Sean Farrell, Filip Mesar, Jared Davidson, Jacob Perreault, Luke Tuch, Xavier Simoneau, Florian Xhekaj, and William Trudeau were assigned to the Laval Rocket in the AHL. Joining them will be goaltender Connor Hughes.

There aren’t any surprises, though there was a slight chance Beck could have started the season with the team if the stars aligned. It’s also worth noting Trudeau is the only defensive prospect heading to Laval.

ON TOPIC: Oliver Kapanen and Lane Hutson Stand Out For The Canadiens

Interestingly, Oliver Kapanen remains at camp, where he’ll look to extend his strong play. As a reminder, Kapanen will not play in the AHL if he fails to earn a roster spot in the NHL. Rather, he will join Timra IK in the SHL.

Other Montreal Canadiens Camp Cuts

Additionally, the following AHL players were also assigned to the Rocket:

Forwards: Vincent Arseneau, Alex Beaucage, Laurent Dauphin, Israel Mianscum, Logan Nijhoff, Jakov Novak and Charles Savoie.

Defencemen: Zackary Hayes, Joshua Jacobs, Chris Jandric, Simon Motew, Jacob Paquette, Vincent Sévigny and Tyler Wotherspoon.

Goalies: Hunter Jones, Luke Cavallin

The Montreal Canadiens will open their season on October 9. They will face the Maple Leafs at the Bell Centre, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET.