Montreal Canadiens Lock Up Defenseman Kaiden Guhle
The Montreal Canadiens continue to have a busy couple of days. After signing Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron to two-year contracts, the Canadiens announced they had signed defenseman Kaiden Guhle to a six-year contract extension with $33 million.
Guhle’s new contract will start next season and have a salary cap hit of $5.5 million.
Here is how the contract breaks down year to year
The Canadiens selected Kaiden Guhle Guhle in the first round (16th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. Guhle played in 70 games with the Canadiens during the 2023-24, recording 22 points (six goals and 16 assists). He was second in blocked shots with 178 and was third on the team in average ice time at 20:51.
In 114 NHL games, Guhle has recorded 40 points (10 goals and 30 assists). He made his debut for Montreal during the 2022-23 season.
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The Canadiens continue to lock up pieces of their young core, especially on defense. There is some uncertainty about whether Guhle can be the number one defenseman in the NHL. However, he is proving he can be a number two. Kaiden Guhle is learning on the fly in Montreal and has been taking on tough minutes over the last two seasons.
President Jeff Gorton and General Manager Kent Hughes have an active offseason. Recall that on Day 1 of Free Agency, they locked Juraj Slafkovsky on an eight-year contract extension. Over the previous couple of seasons, they had signed Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki to eight-year contract extensions.
It is getting crowded on the Canadiens blueline with all the young players up and in the system. Along with Xhekaj, Barron, and Guhle, the Canadiens still have Lane Hutson, Logan Mailloux , and David Reinbacher coming along.
There is a chance the Canadiens could trade off their young defensemen to add something upfront. We know the Montreal Canadiens are still looking for another offensive weapon. The Canadiens want to weaponize the cap space they will have with Carey Price on LTIR once the season begins.
For now, the Canadiens get another staple to their young core locked up in Kaiden Guhle.