Cardiac Cane
Fansided

Alexander Semin Signs One-Year Deal with the Montreal Canadiens

By Brett Finger

facebooktwitterreddit

Former Carolina Hurricanes winger Alexander Semin has signed a one-year deal with the Montreal Canadiens for the 2015-2016 season. The deal will pay him $1.1 million.

More From Cardiac Cane – Top 5 Remaining Options Remaining for the Hurricanes in Free Agency

The Hurricanes bought out the remaining 3 years of a 5 year, $35 million deal that was signed in 2013 earlier in the offseason.

The Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin released the following statement with the signing of Alexander Semin:

"“We are very pleased to have reached a short term agreement with Alexander Semin. Alex is a pure goal scorer with a good shot. We believe his addition to our group of forwards will strengthen our offensive production and our power play. A veteran winger with size, Semin has reached the 20-goal plateau seven times since the beginning of his NHL career 12 years ago. His signing represents a great opportunity for the organization and for Alex’s career,”"

Semin is coming off a season to forget with the Hurricanes, tallying just 6 goals and 19 points in 57 games in the red and white last season. Fans called for a buyout or move of some kind to get rid of the player, with many complaining about lack of compete level and willingness to put in the work necessary to be a good NHL scorer.

Hurricanes GM and NHL Hall of Famer Ron Francis echoed that sentiment following his buyout.

"“He certainly has had some injuries, but last season he did not have the compete level we expect,” Francis told the News & Observer. “We talk about holding our players accountable, and there were some things we felt he did not hold up to, so we made this decision.“When we talk about accountability and a consistently high compete level, we have to follow through, or they make no sense. He did not have that high compete level, for whatever reason.”"

Alexander Semin’s agent Mark Gandler came out and said just a couple days ago that his client was very close to choosing his new team, and he certainly wasn’t bluffing.

More from Cardiac Cane

There was belief that the Pittsburgh Penguins were also in on the 31-year-old winger, and it made sense with fellow Russian Evgeni Malkin already on the team and GM Jim Rutherford at the helm. Rutherford was the one who signed Semin to his original one-year deal and his preposterous contract extension in 2013.

The question now is all about how Alexander Semin will perform in Montreal. Semin’s camp was notorious for their dislike of how the media and fans treated him in Carolina, but now he will step into a much bigger spotlight in Montreal, a massive hockey market with fans and media that can be more harsh.

Semin will also be playing under head coach Michel Therrien in Montreal, a head coach who is known for being tough on players who don’t give full effort. So, if Semin puts on the same lackadaisical show in Montreal that he did in Carolina, things could crash and burn for both sides, but with such a low-risk deal in place, things couldn’t get as bad as they did in Carolina.

The 2015-2016 season will be a big one for Sasha as he joins his new team. Proving all the naysayers wrong will be a daunting task for him, but he will have a very good team to play with in Quebec, surrounded by great young players like P.K. Subban, Max Pacioretty, Alex Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher, and many more.

Alexander Semin and the Montreal Canadiens will play the Carolina Hurricanes at the PNC Arena for the first time on December 5. If Semin is in the lineup, expect a lot of boos from the home faithful in Raleigh.

Next: Alexander Semin's Agent Calls Out Canes Head Coach Bill Peters

Home/Hurricanes News