HabsWorld.net --
With season-opening rosters due on Monday, Sunday was a very busy day on the waiver wire. Montreal added two players to that large list, placing defencemen Corey Schueneman and Madison Bowey on waivers.
Schueneman is the more notable of the two as going into training camp, it felt like he was a reasonable contender to earn a spot. He played in 26 games with the Canadiens last season, recording six points while averaging a respectable 16:36 per game. He also had 11 points in 32 regular season games with Laval while suiting up in 15 playoff contests although he did struggle a little bit in the preseason.
Saturday’s addition of Johnathan Kovacevic was a strong indicator that Schueneman would be waived as the newcomer could find himself in that 7th spot when the season opens up against Toronto on Wednesday.
As for Bowey, he was signed by the Habs on the opening day of free agency, inking a pricey two-way deal which suggested that they have big plans for him with Laval. He was a regular NHL blueliner briefly a few years ago but has largely played in the minors the last two seasons.
These aren’t Montreal’s final cuts but the remainder that they’re likely to make will be waiver-exempt players which means they can wait until Monday to make those decisions while evaluating what’s available on the waiver wire today.
Season-opening rosters will be due at 5 PM ET on Monday and at this point, the Canadiens are likely to try to ice a roster as close to $10.5M over the cap in order to maximize Carey Price’s LTIR space. There’s a decent chance that the roster submitted tomorrow won’t be the same one they have on Wednesday.