Canadiens' Noah Dobson gets $76 million contract update after Islanders sign-and-trade

The Montreal Canadiens took the plunge.

With Noah Dobson being circled by multiple teams as a trade target, it's the Canadiens who got the deal done with the Islanders.

To do it, the Islanders initiated a sign-and-trade with Montreal on Friday. That allowed Dobson to get an eighth year on the contract he signed.

And according to The Athletic's Chris Johnson, Dobson is signing an eight-year, $76 million contract ($9.5 million AAV) as he heads to Montreal.

Dobson, a 25-year old defenseman, immediately becomes a team leader for the Canadiens.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound righty was the 12th overall pick in 2018 by the Islanders.

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He's coming off a decent season, 39 points in 71 games.

But in 2023-24, Dobson showed his potency with 10 goals and 60 assists in 79 games. He also has seasons of 51 and 49 points in the two years prior to that.

Dobson is also a strong shot blocker, in the triple-digits each of the past four seasons.

The reports earlier on Friday were that the St. Louis Blues were the other finalist for Dobson.

The Blues will have to go lick their wounds and look elsewhere, potentially at a free agent like Aaron Ekblad.

The Canadiens can head into Friday night's NHL Draft in a great mood, because they have their top-notch face of their defense for a long time to come.

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