Demidov Situation: Projected Cap Space, Potential Price Trade

Top Montreal Canadiens prospect Ivan Demidov hasn’t had a chance to lace up his skates yet, but it’s never too early to discuss the upcoming roster needs.

With Demidov in place, the clear issue is the lack of a bona fide No.2 centre. Adding such a player to the lineup which would finally give head coach Martin St-Louis a few more options from an offensive standpoint, while also removing some pressure on Juraj Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki, and Cole Caufield on the first line.

Montreal Canadiens Salary Cap Projection (2025-26)

To establish how much salary cap space will be available to the Habs we must take an early look at the potential lineup, with a little help from PuckPedia. I tend to use Cap Wages when evaluating individual players, as it’s quite similar to some of the older sites I have used in the past, but some of their options are only available in Beta mode. They’re the new kids on the block when it comes to salary cap information, so we’ll have to give them a little time to iron out the details. They’ve already added a lot of options, and there are plans to add more. I should note they did say they would give me access to their Beta when I inquired, which was a pleasant surprise.

Alright, back to the Canadiens.

Keep in mind things can and will change.

For now, we’ll work with the players that are currently in the organization. This means we had to sign a few restricted free agents, including Jayden Struble, Emil Heineman, and Jakub Dobes. They could end up making a little more money than what I gave them, but Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes tends to have a rather sharp pencil when discussing contract extensions.

There are other potential changes, such as using Florian Xhekaj or Jared Davidson on the fourth line, however, if they do end up making the team, they won’t offer the Canadiens much of a discount compared to the current roster players. We also have to remember many of these young players have the potential to cash-in on fairly rich bonuses, and those do end up counting against the salary cap.

The positions aren’t important in the projected lineup embedded below. In other words, Kirby Dach could end up on the wing, but the only thing that matters at this exact moment is that we are including his cap hit. The lineup decisions can be made at a later date.

Without further ado, here’s a projected Montreal Canadiens lineup for this summer.

This projected lineup will end up costing the Canadiens roughly $90.8 million in cap space, however, we must keep Carey Price’s $10.5 million contract in mind.

Long-term Injured Reserve (LTIR) funds are a little different from normal cap space. You do not remove the cap hit from the total, but rather, it’s allows teams to spend over the max cap limit. Essentially, you can spend the additional funds, but LTIR cap space does not accrue.

With that in mind, the best bet is to spend up to the cap, and then place the big contract on LTIR, thus maximizing the overall financial manoeuvrability.

In this particular case, the Habs would want to spend the roughly $4.7 million in available cap space BEFORE placing Price’s contract on LTIR. By doing so, they would have access to about $4.7 million in cap space in the offseason, as well as an additional $10.5 million once his contract is placed on LTIR. Keep in mind, teams can exceed the max cap by up to 10% in the summer, making the situation a little easier to navigate.

Seeing as the salary cap for the 2025-26 season is set at $95.5 million, teams can overspend an additional $9.55 million before eventually trimming the salary cap expenditures prior to the start of the season, allowing the Habs to stretch their legs a little when it comes to the sequence of events.

We’ll discuss the free agency options tomorrow, but it’s clear that the Habs have some money to spend.

Once they spend the $4.7 million in available funds, they would then place Price’s contract on LTIR, activating an additional $10.5 million.

Again, this money does not accrue, which is not ideal.

But there is an ideal potential situation out there when it comes to Price.

If the Canadiens can convince a team to absorb Price’s contract, they would no longer have to tiptoe around the LTIR details. Seeing as there’s just one year left on his deal, and the final signing bonus is set to be paid out on July 1, which means teams would no longer have to worry about losing a significant chunk of cash if they were to acquire Price’s contract to reach the cap floor, a trade becomes a legitimate possibility.

If the Canadiens manage to trade his contract, they would have access to the entire $15+ million immediately.

Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks

2025-26  Salary Cap: $95.5 million

Projected salary expenditures: $90.8 million (with Price’s contract)

Available salary cap space prior to Price’s contract being placed on LTIR: $4.7 million

Additional funds once Price’s contract is placed on LTIR: $10.5 million

Projected available salary cap space if Price’s contract is traded: $15.2 million

The final variable we have to consider is that the Canadiens may end up trading one of their roster players to make way for a high-end unrestricted free agent, giving them even more financial manoeuvrability in the summer.

Even though it’s a somewhat complicated situation, it’s clear the Montreal Canadiens are good shape, especially when we consider the salary cap is expected to jump all the way to $104 million in 2026-27, and then $113.5 million in 2027-28. The increases will go a long way when the Habs enter contract extension discussions with Lane Hutson.

Not only is the future undeniably bright in Montreal, the money is set to flow.

Montreal Canadiens salary cap space via Puck Pedia.