The Habs have signed Artem Anisimov and Shawn Matthias to Entry Level Contracts. Both are 6'3 centers with lots of skill and we expect them to play a large role on our AHL team this year. They won't be rushed to the CPHL squad, but left to develop in the minors.
The Habs also made two additional free agent acquisitions, signing depth AHL'ers Danny Markov and Craig Weller. Markov was signed to a 1-year deal while Weller inked a 3-year contract. Both players will be injury callups if necessary, but in all likelihood provide a presence in the AHL.
In other news, the Habs have named Rick Nash as the Captain of the Montreal Canadiens. He was asked about this honour by the media:
"I'm honoured to be the Captain of the Montreal Canadiens. They have been led by former greats such as Jean Beliveau, Maurice Richard, and Guy Carbonneau...I'm honoured to be among those names".
Also named as assistant captains are Brent Seabrook, Ryan Getzlaf and Mikko Koivu. All these players bring different skills to the Habs and their leadership stands out.
GM Simmer commented on this group: "Our goal when I took over for the Habs was to build a team that was not only young and skilled but that also had tremendous leadership qualities. Youy take a look at our captains and not only are they talented, they are a driven group of hockey players. Yes, they are young but in the new NHL youth has proven it can win. We still have some vets to help out the young group in Nabby, O'Donnell and Perrin."
Simmer added, " we are pretty much set for the season now except for a few minor tweaks."
Habs sign 4, name Captains
