Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes wasted no time setting up his salary structure upfront. He worked with the contract former GM Marc Bergevin had signed Nick Suzuki to and made it clear in all negotiations with his forwards that no one would get a higher cap hit. In the media availability following Cole Caufield’s eight-year extension, the Hughes even confirmed it was important that Caufield earn less than the captain. It’s likely because Suzuki is the team’s primary leader and most productive player.
On the blue line, there is no such structure so far, and since three young defensemen will be restricted free agents (RFAs) come July 1, establishing a frame of reference would be a good idea. Kaiden Guhle is, as things stand, the Canadiens’ best-established young blue liner and he should be the highest paid of his cohort. Things might change when Lane Huston and Logan Mailloux establish themselves as NHLers and have played through their entry-level contracts, but that’s a discussion for another day; another year in fact.
The Current Restricted Free Agents
Come July 1, three blueliners will be RFAs: Arber Xhekaj, Justin Barron, and Mattias Norlinder. This is rather interesting because all three are at different stages of their careers, which will of course have an impact on negotiations.
Norlinder was drafted in the third round of the 2019 Draft and played three seasons in Sweden before finally crossing the pond. Since then, he has played six NHL games and 123 American Hockey League outings. So far, he has failed to meet the lofty expectations that were placed on him. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman described him as follows in a 2021 prospects rankings:
“Norlinder’s toolkit is quite interesting as a mobile defenseman with legit offensive skill. He can create offense with his feet, puck handling, vision from both ends of the rink and hard point shot. When I talk to scouts about Norlinder, they see the talent but there is an ultimate question about what role he fills in the NHL. He’s not so good offensively that you can easily project into an NHL power play, and his defending has been up and down over the years, so as a small defender he may not be a penalty killer.” (from: “NHL Pipeline Rankings: No. 12 Montreal Canadiens have legit talent in Nick Suzuki and beyond”, The Athletic, September 1, 2021).
Nearly three years later, he has 30 points in 123 games in the AHL and when 2023 first-round pick David Reinbacher came over from…
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