Alex Belzile has signed a new contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

I like it. One of the best players on Laval this past season, I could see him cracking the lineup in a bottom 6 role if injuries set in (like Chaput and Agostino last year).

All heart & hustle in the AHL. If he plays in the NHL next year it will be because at least a half dozen major injuries hit the depth chart ahead of him but its always good practice to reward players throughout the organisation who put the effort in.

Honestly should've been signed on a AHL deal. Not a huge deal but it's still a contract slot.

I marked this one a no.
The reason is really simple. He's 27, he's basically at his peak and he's still not really an NHL level player.
Use the AHL team as the farm team it's suppose to be. Take a risk on a younger kid who has potential to develop into something else. No sense hanging onto vets who should have entered into the league years ago if they were going to make it.

Another NHL team would've given him a contract. He more than proved he is worth one

So have a team full of 20-23 YOs and that's it? You have no idea on how things really work.

what an absolutely dumb comment on your part. Because you are hell bent on keeping older player that no one else "knows how things really work"
Just pure ignorance on your part.
The guy has been bouncing around between the ECHL and AHL for 7 years. If he was ever going to be a consistent NHL player he'd be there by now. Instead he might make it there if a ton of people get injured. Period. But you are hell bent on thinking that is a better choice than going after a potential young FA out of the NCAA or CHL or europe.
As if you need 27 year olds who have no real experience playing pro hockey and half the talent being the "mentor" to prospects.
It's a total waste of a roster space. There are more deserving people out there who could be given a chance. He's had his for 7 years. Time to step out the way.

I'm not argueing that he is going to be a NHL player at all. If you are going to have a bunch of kids in the AHL, you are going to need some veteran leadership to show the kids how to do things. Belzile brings nothing but Heart and Leadership. He is the perfect person to have in Laval. Half the talent? Are you stupid or just ignorant? He was one of the very few bright spots in Laval this year. I can name 5 players on every single team who deserve a contract less than Belzile. This isn't NHL 19 buddy, you can't expect to ice a team full of 22/23 YO's in the AHL.

Honestly he was right, you absolutely need some veteran that can perform in the ahl. He will never comme in the Nhl for sure but he is a greaf exemple for the young guys and one of the best player in laval last year. The facts are that their is no more quality unsigned prospect and with the players we have under contract, we need to get 3-4 more players and even by doing that we will make some very low quality propect play like verbeek en waked. The best way to make our prospect progress in the ahl is by winning and juste young guys are not enough to win. Check every single ahl team, they all have some veteran ahl players.

He acts like there are tons of 20-23 YO players with potential. I would rather have Belzile taking a contract spot than Verbeek/Alain/Pezzetta/Waked/Shinkaruk/Audette.

veteran leadership from the guy who's been sitting most of the time in the ECHL. Honestly I don't even know where you get these things. Furthermore it's like you never even played sports.
As if those kids coming out the NCAA have no leadership skills. A lot of the unsigned ones are 22-23 years old and played 4 years of NCAA hockey. A lot of the prospects coming over from Europe are 22-25 years old. The penguins signed Riikola last year, he was 24. He's a far better player than this guy who's spent most of his time in the ECHL.

For every dud signing you sign, you pass up on a better player might have the talent to make it to the next level. Riikkola showed he'd be a good 7th man last year at the very least.
There are players like that out there. You choose to pass them up for some false narrative of "leadership" as if most of these kids have never played hockey before. They are all at least 20 years old. They have all played in organized hockey before, they are typically the best players on the ice and had leadership roles where they came from. They will also be on a team with other younger players who have been on the team for a year or two before.

But no, lets sign the 27 year old who will never make it anywhere, who's been lucking around in some backwater ECHL team for "leadership".

This is why teams don't develop talent well. This backward thinking. It's a farm team. The only time you aren't signing younger players is if you simply can't find them and you need to field a team.
But it's May, and hockey doesn't start till september. So I'm pretty sure they can find someone.

Stop trying to make up **** to try and justify your opinion. He's played nearly 200 AHL games and was close to a PPG in the AHL this year. He's an assistant captain and gives his 100% everynight (The kind of mentor you need). Alot of the guys coming out of the NCAA can't produce anything near to what Belzile can produce. Riikola definitely is not better than Belzile. First off he's a defensemen so they aren't even comparable, secondly, he doesn't provide anything near what Belzile provides offensively. You are acting like every 22-25 YO player has potential. Like I said above your comment, there are Half - Dozen guys that are in Laval that I would take Belzile over. Most of the guys you sign out of Europe or NCAA end up becoming low tier AHL players. Belzile is currently a top tier AHL player. I don't know why you are so keen on trying to prove this guy is an ECHL calibre player. He was the Rockets MVP last year. It's not like he's some AHL player who provides nothing and contributes 10 PT year.

This guy is going to end up being a top line player in the AHL again next year. Contending for the scoring title while player PK time. He's the kind of guy you need in the AHL to mentor the younger guys, so yes, this is a very good signing and is much needed.

What's your favorite team? I can name 6-10 guys who are less deserving of a contract than Belzile.

As if those kids coming out the NCAA have no leadership skills. A lot of the unsigned ones are 22-23 years old and played 4 years of NCAA hockey. A lot of the prospects coming over from Europe are 22-25 years old. The penguins signed Riikola last year, he was 24. He's a far better player than this guy who's spent most of his time in the ECHL.

So you would rather take up 10 roster spots trying to find an NHL player over taking a near PPG AHL player? Come on dude

The whole point of having a farm team is to find players capable of breaking into the NHL.
I think you have already admitted he never will.
It's kind of a point blank situation don't you think?

There are guys out there who are 22+ years old, been playing hockey for a long time. They don't need a false idea of a "team leader" what they need is their chance.
Maybe they make it, maybe they don't. But you already know this guy really isn't going to make it. So why waste the time. And that's always been the point that I made clear from post 1.

No one really cares about willing the AHL memorial cup. Honestly, that's not why NHL teams fund the AHL.
They fund them to find and develop players to help at the NHL level. It's a very old way to look at AHL teams as having older vets now a days. Most teams are realizing this and the average age of a AHL level player is dropping, much like it is in the NHL. The games getting faster, more skilled etc...
There is no point hanging on to 27 year old players who won't make it. The only reason to bring them back is your scouting department couldn't find anyone else to come in and get an opportunity.

Doubt it

Im not only talking about leadership, the teams need to win. We need some garentied ahl performer like every year to make the playoff and give real experience. Not by losing but making young kids play that they will get better. Look a the top ahl pts player last year. Very few are rookies.

I hate to break it to you, winning teams don't care what their AHL level teams are doing. Do you think the penguins cared what WBS was doing when they called Guenztel up at the end of the season for the playoffs when he was a rookie, or rust, or ZAR, or any other player for that matter. They cared less how it effected the minor league farm team.

That's every team in the league. You don't need to win to pick up game experience. They are there to learn the system and the style of play required in it. Period.
I'm not sure why that is so hard for you to grasp. Playing a few extra AHL games a year really isn't "gaining experience" They are already playing like 70-80 games a year at the AHL level.
And no one cares who is the point leader there. Most of the time the best players there are getting sent up to the NHL to help the main club around trade deadline time. So they can see if they have something there to help push them over the top. It's just silly to not recognize that.
Honestly, these are really weak excuses for keeping players on a farm team that you know have virtually no NHL potential. That's the truth of it. The average age in the AHL in 2012 was 24 years old and 2 months. This year it was 23 years old and 10 months.
Do the math. Everyone knows you need youth in the AHL to build a team in the NHL. Because the average age of an NHL team is dropping like a rock. It's down to 26 years old now. Teams like the blue jackets had 15 players who aren't yet 25 . That's the future. Not 27 year old players in the AHL because you need a "veteran" to "lead the team".

french

I guess the habs do have more depth this year. I would put him in the same category of player as Agostino/Chaput.