Habs Qualify Five Players, Non-Tender Four

The Habs entered Monday with nine players in need of a qualifying offer.  They ultimately decided to keep five of them while four others will now become unrestricted free agents on Tuesday.

Players who received qualifying offers were goalies Jakub Dobes and Cayden Primeau, forward Sean Farrell, and defencemen Jayden Struble and William Trudeau.  Meanwhile, those who will hit the open market are defenders Noel Hoefenmayer and Gustav Lindstrom, plus forwards Rafael Harvey-Pinard and Xavier Simoneau.

Dobes and Struble were no-brainers in terms of receiving a qualifying offer but the other three weren’t as much of guarantees.  Primeau’s offer was for $1.068 million with arbitration rights which is on the high side for a third-string goalie.  It’s possible that he agrees to a lesser number as well but heading into the day, many felt he’d be non-tendered.

As for Farrell, it didn’t look like he’d have a shot at getting a qualifying offer early in the season when he was demoted to the fourth line in Laval and even made a healthy scratch.  But a big second half will give him another opportunity next season, assuming he clears waivers.  Trudeau has yet to play in the NHL but has been a solid defender for the past three seasons with the Rocket.  Sometimes, teams won’t qualify these players to give them a chance elsewhere but instead, he’ll stay in the organization.  However, like Farrell, he will have to clear waivers to get back there first.

The decision to non-tender Harvey-Pinard shouldn’t come as much surprise.  Owed a $1 million qualifying offer, that’s a high price to pay for someone who played just one NHL game this past season and frankly wasn’t all that impactful in Laval where he had 19 points in 40 games.  It wouldn’t entirely be surprising to see him brought back on a cheaper deal but it also would make sense for the 26-year-old to try to seek out an opportunity with another organization where he’d be closer to getting an NHL opportunity.  Lindstrom was an easy non-tender after he signed a five-year deal in Sweden while Hoefenmayer was a decent defender following a midseason acquisition but evidently isn’t in the long-term plans.

Simoneau, on the other hand, was a bit of a surprise.  While he hasn’t seen any NHL ice time, he has been a useful bottom-six spark plug for the Rocket and isn’t too far removed from a 37-point season with them.  Notably, he’s also waiver-exempt for another year which usually can make a team decide to give a player one last look.  Instead, he’ll get a chance to test unrestricted free agency on Tuesday as well.