The Montreal Canadiens made the most significant noise in National Hockey League free agency on Wednesday as they signed Joe Veleno of Montreal, Quebec to a one-year deal worth $900,000. Veleno was already traded in the offseason from the Chicago Blackhawks to the Seattle Kraken. However, Veleno was not in Seattle long as the Kraken bought out his contract for the 2025-26 National Hockey League regular season.
Veleno’s initial contract was two years and $4.55 million with the Detroit Red Wings, which was signed on July 20, 2024. He was to earn $2.275 million in 2024-25, and $2.275 million in 2025-26. During the 2024-25 season, Veleno was traded from the Red Wings to the Blackhawks for goaltender Petr Mrazek of Ostrava, Czech Republic and Craig Smith of Madison, Wisconsin. Then on June 21, 2025, Veleno was traded from the Blackhawks to the Kraken for Andre Burakovsky of Klangenfurt, Austria.
Veleno in 2024-25
In 74 games this past season, Veleno had eight goals and nine assists for 17 points. He was a -23 with 17 penalty minutes, 75 shots on goal, 201 faceoff wins, 44 blocked shots, 139 hits, 13 takeaways, and 44 giveaways.
Veleno did not exemplify much offensive skill. He did have one multi-point game which came in a 7-4 Blackhawks win over the Philadelphia Flyers on March 23. On this night Veleno found chemistry with fellow Canadian Tyler Bertuzzi of Sudbury, Ontario. Bertuzzi set up Veleno, and Veleno also scored from Bertuzzi.
Why was Veleno bought out?
The decision was based on finances. The Kraken saved $4.7 million by trading Burakovsky and buying out Veleno according to FOX Sports Seattle.
Where does Veleno fit into Canadiens’s plans?
This is where things get a little bit interesting. The Canadiens were in need of a centre when they lost centre Christian Dvorak of Palos Township, Illinois in free agency. Dvorak signed a one-year deal worth $5.4 million with the Philadelphia Flyers on Canada Day.
At this time, the Canadiens have versatile forward Kirby Dach of Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta pencilled in as their second line centre. However, there are two problems with Dach. The first is the fact he is injury prone, and the second is the fact he struggled mightily defensively in 2024-25. Dach was a -29 this past year and is -51 for his career. Even though Dach can play centre and wing, he may not be suitable for possible expanded ice time.
Could Veleno fit into the second line centre spot in Montreal? Â The feeling at this time is no and that the Canadiens need to fill the void with someone else. Veleno himself was a -23 in 2024-25, has had defensive struggles, and has never been very reliable on faceoffs, where he has won 46.5% of his career draws. At this time, the Canadiens free agency grade for Veleno is a C. It is ok, but more is needed in Montreal to fill the centre spot.
