Montreal Canadiens sign AHL forwards Jared Davidson and Hunter McKown to one-year deals
The Montreal Canadiens shortened their list of restricted free agents by inking forwards Jared Davidson and Hunter McKown to one-year, two-way contracts.
That cuts the Canadiens’ list of unsigned players to four, including NHL skaters Zachary Bolduc and Arber Xhekaj. The other two are likely destined for the AHL’s Laval Rocket: forward Sean Farrell and newly acquired defenceman Maksymilian Szuber.
Expect Davidson and McKown to suit up for the Habs’ farm club as well.
Outside of a 10-game stint with the Canadiens last season where he collected one assist, Davidson has spent his entire pro career with the Rocket. In 2025-26, the five-foot-11, 183-pound forward played 53 regular season games for Laval with 16-9-23 point totals. He was held pointless in three playoff games.
Davidson, 24, was selected in the fifth round (130th pick) by the Habs in the 2022 NHL Draft.
McKown was acquired by the Canadiens from the Columbus Blue Jackets in June, with Luke Tuch going the other way. The undrafted, six-foot-1, 192-pound right-handed centre had 9-16-25 point totals in 63 games with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters this past season.
A native of San Jose, CA, McKown had one goal and one assist in eight playoff games. The 23-year-old has yet to make his NHL debut.
