Montreal Canadiens sign Alex Barre-Boulet to one-year deal

The Montreal Canadiens have signed forward Alex Barré-Boulet to a one-year contract worth $775,000.

The 27-year-old has established himself as one of the best AHLers over the past decade. In 294 games over six years, ABB has 113 goals and 302 points with the Syracuse Crunch. That includes 19 points in 23 games last year and seven points in the playoffs, with his 68-point rookie season in 2018-19 earning him Rookie of the Year honors.

But on the NHL side, he hasn’t had as much luck. He played in a career-high 36 games last year with Tampa Bay, scoring six goals and nine points in a depth role. In four career NHL seasons with Tampa Bay and Seattle, Barre-Boulet has 12 goals and 18 points while struggling to make it as a smaller forward.

Signing with Montreal allows the Montmagny, Quebec native to play closer to home on a team he grew up watching. While he might be a power-play specialist at best, Montreal could still find work for him deeper in the lineup, especially as the Habs continue to find themselves in rebuild mode. The Canadiens are no stranger to giving smaller forwards a shot in recent years, with Riley Harvey-Pinard being a more notable example in recent years.

The Canadiens have just over $10 million in cap space, according to CapFriendly. Arber Xhekaj still needs a new deal as an RFA, but the club still has about 18 NHLers on the roster as of now. Signing Barre-Boulet at league minimum gives Montreal a bit of leeway to work with if he was to make the roster.