Chris Kreider will have a full no-trade clause

Michaël Petit
Chris Kreider will have a full no-trade clause
Credit: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

The Montreal Canadiens scored a home run yesterday by signing veteran Chris Kreider to a very reasonable contract.

I was the first to have mixed feelings about the signing: yes, it's an excellent addition on paper, but it's too easy to dwell on the past.

But you have to move on, as they say. It's been 12 years since that happened, and Price is technically no longer with the organization. In any case, Price doesn't hold a grudge against Kreider.

Let's focus on the positive side instead: A talented, tough, and experienced player is joining the team for just over $2 million per season.

What we were all waiting for, however, were the performance bonuses and a detailed breakdown of the contract. PuckPedia recently posted a tweet listing all the key details of that contract.

The key takeaway is that Kreider will have a full no-trade clause.

Aside from the NMC (no-movement clause), what's particularly surprising is that he could easily earn an additional $2.5M on top of his base salary of $850,000 and his $1.3M signing bonus.

If Kreider plays at least 10 games (which will happen barring an unfortunate injury that keeps him out for the entire season), he'll earn $2 million.

It's worth noting that it was to be expected he would receive an easily attainable bonus after losing money on his buyout. With that $2 million, he'll be able to earn at least $4.15 million for the season. Remember, he was originally set to earn $6.5 million this season.

In addition, for every 10 goals he scores this season, he'll receive $250,000, and if he scores 40 goals, that amount will rise to $500,000.

Keep in mind that he has scored at least 20 goals in each of his last eight seasons and has reached that mark 11 times in his last 12 seasons. Even as he gets older, he should score at least 20 goals playing alongside Demidov, and reaching the 30-goal mark isn't out of the question.

He scored 39 goals in 2023–24.

If the Habs are unable to absorb all the performance bonuses into this season's payroll, they can carry over a portion of them to next season, as they've been doing for the past few seasons.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what he can do this season as part of the Habs' top six.


In a Nutshell

– Anthony Marcotte will not be returning as a host of the “Processus” podcast.

– What a beautiful goal.

– I'm torn between 1D and 2A. Will Smith and Macklin Celebrini seem really funny, and I love Seth Jarvis, too. Another funny guy.

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