Canadiens sign familiar defenceman but immediately place him on waivers
Even with just a few hours before their 2024-25 NHL regular season gets underway, the Montreal Canadiens’ front office isn’t afraid to make a few moves.
Today, the franchise announced they’d signed Gustav Lindstrom to a one-year, two-way contract.
But while you might’ve assumed that meant he’d be in the lineup tonight when the Canadiens host the Toronto Maple Leafs, they’ve got different plans.
Right after announcing the deal, the Canadiens followed up the move with the news that he’d been placed on waivers, hoping to send him down to the AHL’s Laval Rocket.
Les Canadiens ont placé le nom du défenseur Gustav Lindström au ballottage dans le but de le céder au Rocket de Laval.
The Canadiens have placed defenseman Gustav Lindström on waivers for the purpose of a loan to the Laval Rocket.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 9, 2024
Given that Lindstrom hadn’t been signed to an NHL deal by any of the other 31 teams heading into opening night, there seems to be a pretty good chance he’ll be able to head back to the AHL team, where he played four games last season.
A 38th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2017 draft, the 25-year-old Swede has put up five goals and 30 assists in 174 NHL games across three different organizations.
This isn’t the first time the Canadiens have placed Lindstrom on waivers. Last season, he spent 14 games with the Habs following a trade from Detroit before being picked up on waivers by the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks brought him back to training camp this year on a professional tryout contract, but he was eventually released from that agreement and was not able to work out a new deal.
The Canadiens get their season going with a 7 pm puck drop against Toronto tonight.
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