When the Montreal Canadiens signed veteran netminder Kaapo Kahkonen to a one-year, $1.15MM contract this summer, it was speculated by some that he could be viewed as a leading contender for the role of backup goalie behind entrenched starter Sam Montembeault . Today, The Athletic’s Arpon Basu reported that the competition for the job of No. 2 netminder is 2024-25 backup Jakub Dobes ’ “job to lose instead of a real battle,” and that the Canadiens’ plan all along “was to have Kahkonen help mentor Jacob Fowler in Laval.”

Fowler, of course, is the Canadiens’ top goaltending prospect and a player widely seen as one of, if not the, top goalie prospects in the entire sport. Although Kahkonen is subject to waivers, Basu noted that the player’s $1.15MM cap hit, the maximum allowa

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