Should have just stuck him in the minors. Move makes no sense unless something big is coming...What a tease!

Imo not the best decision. Barely any relief this year

I know everyone will think they are trading for Laine now but....

Karl Alzner was well liked in the organization and they may have done him a favour for not complaining in Laval last season.

This buyout doesn't help their cap at all this year and they were better off buying him out next year. It actually hurts their cap going forward as cap hit is extended

It makes sense

if 2020 buyout (today's news)

2020-21 : 3,95m
2021-22 : 1,95m
2022-23 : 0,83m
2023-2024 : 0,83m
=7,6

if 2021 :

2020-21 : 3,55m (Laval) (+0,4)
2021-22 : 2,3m (-0,4)
2022-23 : 1,1m (-0,3)
2023-2024 : 0 (+0,8)
=7

More money for key years (2021-2022 & 2022-2023)

He didnt plan to use the extra 400k obtained from Alzner in Laval

So is Abdelkader

Bergevin is the same guy that traded Kovalchuk for a 3rd rounder to the Capitals early instead of waiting on a bidding war at the deadline and maybe getting a 2nd rounder because he wanted to do Kovalchuk "a favour" and play for a winner with Kovalchuk maybe coming back cheap

This guy rather be liked by a few people in the organization that do whats best for business, I say this, sometimes

It's the 2,66 million savings next year (I think) when so many UFA on the team plus KK and other RFAs.

More relief in 2021-2022 when it will be needed.

Looks like the price for cap dumps was too high. After Mon pays his signing bonus he's only owed 5 mil. Two thirds is only 3.3333333 mil. Hard to believe a team wouldn't take one of Montreal's 2 nd rd picks to buy him out.

Bidding war????? 🤪

Bergevin is starting to become known as a gm that makes a play that benefits players as well. Obviously not the perfect scenario for them to buy out Alzner this year but it gives him a chance to play for another team in the nhl. He did a solid for kovalchuk at the deadline too. He could’ve got a 3rd from Boston instead he accepted a 4th from Washington because kovalchuk preferred playing for the caps

H egot a third from WSH, but what you are saying is right.

Ya I just went back to double check and didn’t have time to edit my comment before you called me out lol

I don’t think this move is a favor to the Alzner, or even a cap management strategy.

It's just about stop throwing real money by the window while the owner cant sell hockey tickets, advertizements, show tickets and beer sales...

This is a class decision. The habs didn’t need to buy him out, but Alzner never would have cracked the NHL on the contract he was on. This buyout does Alzner a favour and allows him to pursue other opportunities.

To be fair Alzner is human and expressed since being sent down that he didn't like being there and thinks he can prove to still be an NHLer, with that said he acted with a ton of professionalism and showed the ropes to the rookies. He paid his dues and if he asked Marc to let him go I think it's a decent thing to do for him not even taking into account the business side of things.

I'm convinced it's a move asked by Alzner more than Bergevin clearing cap for a big fish. In the end we'll keep the cap this year but save a lot next year when it's needed.
Thank you Alzner for what you've done in Laval!

It’s crazy. Sometimes I do the same and people will immediately correct you! Lol this place.

This fits exactly what I was thinking.

The classy Canadiens don’t want to make the good soldier, Alzner, suffer in the minors making a paltry 4.5 million dollars. Poor dude. Laval is just terrible! I mean it’s only 15 minutes from Montreal

He at least has a chance to play in the nhl now. Not saying it happens but he has a chance at least

Good on the guy but it's not like he had to uproot his family to go to Laval. I don't see the point in buying him out for appearances. That's not a Gms job especially when he cant attract free agents to begin with. Bergie the jokester thinks he can always please everyone. It rubbed a lot of people the wrong way when he apologized for Kirk Muller being an English coach. Like cmon. Fans aren't that ridiculous, you are simply pleasing the radical media.
This move isnt a precursor to anything in my mind but Bergy protecting this image of himself and he gets to do Alzner a favour so he can high five him later on when the pandemic ends and he gets to be a hero. Bergy is the opposite of the Brad Pitt character in Moneyball. Who says, that players and GMs should never mix and be friends!

I rather a ruthless GM like Kyle Dubas that tries to rob Gms like GMJR for 1st round picks and tries to pry Hamilton out of Carolina for nothing!

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.habsworld.net/2020/06/when-is-the-right-time-for-the-habs-to-buy-out-karl-alzner/amp/

2020-21: $3.96M vs. $3.55M = -$0.41M
2021-22: $1.96M vs. $2.29M = +$0.33M
2022-23: $0.83M vs. $1.17M = +$0.34M
2022-24: $0.83M vs. $0M = -$0.83M

Net: -$0.57M

Sorry I just had to do the exact calculation myself to see what it was haha.

I guess it is not that bad, but is it really worth saving $300k in years 2 and 3 to save much less in years 1 and 4? Maybe.

But the issue I have with the move is it removes all other options, you can't trade a buyout. MTL could have traded Alzner's contract much like the Staal trade, this year or next year if he wanted too. Who knows maybe Alzner would have got sick of the AHL and terminates his contract (I doubt it). Now the habs are stuck with that cap hit.

If he was not planning on using it this year then I guess it doesn't really matter, but he also obviously wasn't considering trading his contract to make a big move next year either as its no longer an option.

Just seems like it was all a courtesy thing for Alzner, and maybe its best for this situation to end anyways.

Edit:
I could see a team like ottawa taking Alzner after the signing bonus is paid for a 2nd round pick maybe more, this year. That would have given the habs a lot more cap space if they are serious about competing in the next two years.

Also gives the Habs 1 more spot on their roster that they can sign one of their draft picks to. As of now they only have 5 spots available if all the guys they issued qualifying offers to sign. I doubt hudon does so let’s make it 6.