Montreal Canadiens sign Al Montoya to two-year extension

The Montreal Canadiens have signed goaltender Al Montoya to a two-year extension. 

Entering 2017, the Montreal Canadiens had a bit of an issue. Due to the rules of the expansion draft, they didn’t have a goalie to expose in it. Montreal would have to either expose Carey Price or risk a huge penalty for not abiding by the rules. They wasted no time fixing this issue by signing backup goaltender Al Montoya to a two-year extension.

"In 11 games with the Canadiens in 2016-17, Montoya has a 4-4-2 record, with one shutout. The 6’2” and 209 pound goaltender boasts a 2.74 goals-against average, and has stopped 290 of the 319 shots he has faced for a .909 save percentage."

His cap hit will be $1.065 million. This could make him a viable candidate to be selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 expansion draft.

Montoya is perhaps best known for being the goalie during the Canadiens’ 10-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Serving as Price’s backup, he hasn’t seen too much action. Montoya could be replaced at a relatively cheap price, especially since Montreal has a number of goalie prospects who project to be NHL caliber.

However, this extension has more to do with the expansion draft than anything else. With Montoya signed for the next two seasons, Montreal can expose him in the expansion draft. Without extending him, they’d have no other goalies under contract through next season excluding Price, who has a no movement clause.

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Montoya has been a semi-reliable backup for Price, so re-signing him makes sense. Also, he allows the Canadiens to continue to let their goalie prospects to develop. Should Montoya prove himself surplus, trading him shouldn’t be too difficult. Teams are constantly looking for more goaltending. His price tag isn’t expensive at all either. With this move, the Canadiens avoid a potentially awkward situation while giving themselves some options for the future.