NHL Rumours: Kreider to Canadiens, Fantilli Not Done & Stone Extension – The Hockey Writers – NHL Rumors

In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we start off with Chris Kreider joining the Montreal Canadiens after his contract was terminated. Next, Adam Fantilli and the Columbus Blue Jackets are still working on a new contract, and the hope is to have him ready for training camp.

Finally, the Vegas Golden Knights have re-signed their captain, Mark Stone, to a two-year extension.

Kreider Joins Canadiens Despite Ugly History

Throughout the offseason, one of the biggest questions with the Canadiens was about which forward they were going to bring in. They were linked to Matthew Knies, Kirill Marchenko, and nearly every other impactful player available.

When it was announced that Kreider and the Anaheim Ducks would be terminating his contract, a lot of fingers pointed towards the Canadiens being a good fit. The big question about that was whether or not the American-born winger would want to play across the border for a Canadian team.

Clearly, that wasn’t an issue for him. Kreider signed a one-year deal worth $2.15 million, with another $3 million in potential bonuses.

After the collision with Carey Price in 2014, there have been some mixed emotions from Canadians fans online, but that was nearly 13 years ago, and none of the active players were around for that.

In terms of management, Kreider has plenty of connections, too. General manager Jeff Gorton held the keys to the New York Rangers for much of Kreider’s tenure, and head coach Martin St. Louis was his teammate for a period of time.

And beyond all of that, slotting a 50-point winger with 30-goal potential into the Canadiens’ lineup just makes them even more dangerous heading into the season.

Fantilli Contract Still Not Done

With a few restricted free agents remaining, the Blue Jackets have been working hard to get Fantilli signed, but there is enough of a gap that the negotiations will be heading into the final days ahead of training camp.

Earlier in the offseason, the expectation was that the deal would be around $13 million annually for five seasons. Now, the number has likely gone up after extensions like Leo Carlsson, Connor Bedard, and Macklin Celebrini.

The Hockey Writers’ Mark Scheig reported, “Unless there is a sudden change and significant progress made, sounds like #CBJ and Adam Fantilli won’t be completed this weekend.”

He added that the team remains confident that a deal will be done before Wednesday, the opening of training camp.

Fantilli, the third-overall pick from 2023, has already scored 30 goals and came up just shy of 60 points last season, and it looks like there is a very bright future for him, hence the high price tag.

The Blue Jackets have had a bit of a messy offseason, with the Zach Werenski trade saga and Marchenko telling management he won’t be signing an extension.

Getting Fantilli locked into a new deal is more important than just retaining the player. The Blue Jackets need to show the rest of the team they are in a position to move forward, and hopefully make the playoffs.

Stone Signs with Vegas for 2 More Seasons

The Golden Knights are one of many cap-strapped teams across the league, but that didn’t get in the way of them getting Stone signed to a two-year extension. Paying him $9 million until he is 37, it was important to the team to bring him back.

While we have seen Vegas operate in a ruthless manner in the past, Stone wasn’t getting that treatment.

They have plenty of others eligible for an extension, too, headlined by William Karlsson.

Alex Pietrangelo’s cap will come off the books next offseason, and after moving Pavel Dorofeyev to the Rangers, they should be in good shape moving forward.

The Golden Knights have had a lot of turnover, but are expected to be a dominant team once again.

Stone was brought to Vegas in 2018-19 and has been their captain for most of his tenure. The big question about Stone is his health. He has spent a lot of time on long-term injured reserve, most notably with back injuries. After eight seasons with the club, his highest games played total was 66 back in 2024-25.

While the club is not shy about using LTIR, the changes to the salary cap, including a playoff cap, will be an adjustment, but bringing back the captain for $9 million should have been a no-brainer.