Looking for a one-way contract, Alex Belzile found a taker. It is with the New York Rangers that he will continue his career.
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The Belzile clan and the Rangers have agreed to cut the pear in half since only the second year of the agreement will be one-sided.
If he manages to carve out a place for himself in the formation of the Rangers, he will certainly be a good mentor for the young people of the organization, including Alexis Lafrenière. In Montreal, he was always considered a big brother and he was very popular with young people. No wonder the organization named him captain of the Laval Rocket.
In 31 games with the Canadiens last season, he scored 14 points, including six goals. St-Éloi’s pride will always remember February 12, 2023. That afternoon at the Bell Centre, against the Edmonton Oilers, he scored his first NHL goal. He became the 20th player since 2000 to break the ice at over 30 years old.
At the end of the last campaign, he represented the Canadiens for the Bill-Masterton Trophy, awarded annually to the player displaying perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.
“We tried to keep him in Montreal, even for two years. On the other hand, as we told him, when he was 32, he had our support to get as much money as possible. And with the number of attackers we had, we had limits that we could not exceed, ”said Kent Hughes, by videoconference.
Quiet in the market
This number of attackers is also a reason why the Canadian will be discreet on the free agent market. Hughes added forward Philippe Maiilet and defenseman Brady Keeper to the roster, but it’s more to serve the interests of the Laval Rocket.
“We don’t want to block the progress of our young players,” said the general manager of the Canadian. If we go looking for 32-year-old guys, we fear that it will harm their development. »
Not to mention that the market is not the strongest this season. It is better to wait until after the next season, when a player like Mike Hoffman will no longer be under contract, which will give $ 4.45 million more on the mass team salary.