Big News For Montembeault

The Montreal Canadiens had several players who were expected to welcome little bundles of joy this summer. After Nick Suzuki’s daughter Maya arrived before the start of the playoffs, Mike Matheson became a dad for a third time in May, and Alex Carrier and his significant other Alicia Lessard also became new parents this summer. Goaltender Samuel Montembeault and his wife Daryanne finally welcomed their new bundle of joy to the world.According to Montembeault’s wife’s Instagram account, their baby was born on July 22, and not to mess with the team’s trend, it was also a little girl. The Montembeaults introduced their daughter to fans on social media with a few pictures of the little one, which were just precious.Canadiens Trail Only Hurricanes In NHL Contract Efficiency RankingsWhy Signing Matheson To An Extension Was Important For The CanadiensFormer Canadiens Goaltender Not A Fan Of Habs’ Goaltending CarouselThe summer must not have been easy for Montembeault, whose future appears to be in limbo right now. He still has a year left on his contract with the Canadiens, but after an atrocious season last year, there is doubt about where he will be playing next season.Even if the Canadiens do not trade him, he may well have to battle for the right to remain in the NHL out of training camp, with Jakub Dobes clearly being the front-runner for the number one role this year and Jacob Fowler having shown that he can play well at the NHL level.Photo credit: Daryanne MontembeaultWhile Fowler doesn’t need to clear waivers to return to the AHL with the Laval Rocket, one can wonder if that’s a route the Canadiens would be interested in taking. GM Kent Hughes has already said that the young netminder needs to see a lot of action this year and that if he stays with the big club, it won’t be to ride the pine. That sounded like the Canadiens were not interested in riding a goalie trio this season, which is good news for Montembeault, who has also made it clear that he’s not interested in a goalie carousel.If the Canadiens feel like Fowler’s development would be best served in the NHL, it’s highly unlikely that Montembeault will still be with the Habs to start the season. While Montreal could just waive him to send him down to the AHL, that’s not Hughes’ style; he’s not in the business of losing assets for nothing, even if the asset was a waiver pickup in the first place, apparently.The last time Hughes faced a tricky goalie situation with Jake Allen, Montembeault and Cayden Primeau, he ended up keeping the trio in the NHL (Primeau wasn’t waiver-exempt back then), and it eventually led to veteran Allen being traded to the New Jersey Devils. A year later, the Habs moved on from Primeau after his confidence was shattered by a tough spell in the NHL, and he was sent back down to Laval. Which is not all that different from what Montembeault went through this past season. By the time Hughes managed to find a trade partner for Primeau, all he could get was a seventh-round pick in the 2026 draft from the Carolina Hurricanes. Considering he had been a seventh-round pick at the 2017 draft himself, the Canadiens broke even in that deal.Perhaps Hughes has yet to find a team ready to give him what he believes to be Montembeault’s value in a trade; that’s not entirely surprising, considering his value is probably at an all-time low right now. Still, it puts the Canadiens in a pickle if they feel Fowler’s development would be best served by staying in the NHL. At least, Montembeault now has something else to occupy his mind as he learns the ropes of fatherhood. This leaves Noah Dobson and his wife as the only Canadiens couple still expecting their new arrival.Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.Join the discussion by signing up to the Canadiens' roundtable on The Hockey News.