The Montreal Canadiens and defenseman Lane Hutson have agreed to an eight-year contract extension worth $70.8 million, carrying an AAV of $8.85 million. $55 million of the deal is to be paid in signing bonuses.
Lane Hutson #GoHabsGO 8 yr $8.85M Cap Hit ext:
Yr 1 1M Base & 11M SB
Yr 2 1M & 11M SB
Yr 3 1M & 9.5M SB
Yr 4 1M & 6.5M SB
Yr 5 1.2M & 6M SB
Yr 6 1.2M & 6M SB
Yr 7 2.2M & 5M SB
Yr 8 7.2MYr 6-8: 10 team No Trade Clause
Rep’d by Coffey @QuartexxHockey https://t.co/3TWiLCMrzj
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) October 13, 2025
Many were wondering when the Montreal Canadiens would sign Hutson to an extension. While there was no pressure to complete it, the extensions by New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes and Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jackson LaCombe, each carrying AAVs of $9 million per season, ramped up the timeline for the Canadiens.
With Hutson being a 10.2(c) restricted free agent like Luke Hughes next offseason, the only leverage the player had was to hold out. As mentioned over the summer on NHLRumors.com, if it were summertime next year and the Canadiens didn’t have a deal in place with Hutson, then panic would set in. However, since it is now and he is just eligible to sign an extension, there was a sense of urgency to get it done.
Lane Hutson signs an outrageously team-friendly deal considering his skill-set, age, comps, and a rapidly exploding salary cap. pic.twitter.com/GDsNirWfEb
— dom (@domluszczyszyn) October 13, 2025
Montreal had been trying to sign the reigning Calder Trophy winner before the season started. Montreal and Hutson’s camp had been making progress, according to Marco D’Amico of RG Media, on a new extension despite what they had been saying to the media. As Jonathan Bernier of TVA Sports reported on Friday, Hutson’s agent and GM Kent Hughes were spotted together ahead of the game against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday. As Bernier stated, the two sides were on the verge of a deal.
And here we are, the Canadiens’ defenseman is signed long-term, like the rest of the core, including Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Dobson, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Kaiden Guhle. Except those guys signed on the first day of free agency. This took a little longer as Hughes told Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.
Lane Hutson is a special player. Last season, he recorded 66 points (six goals and 60 assists), setting not only Canadiens records as a defenseman, but also tying NHL records as a rookie defenseman. That is how much he can change the game from the back end. As some have said, he is already in that Quinn Hughes category, where teams fear what he can do with his skating ability and skill with the puck coming out of the defensive zone.
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