The Montreal Canadiens signed Karl Alzner two years ago thinking he would be a top four shutdown defenceman for them. It was thought he could be a perfect stay-at-home partner for the more offensive minded Jeff Petry.
After two years of the five year contract, there is no hope left for Alzner to be a top four option for the Habs. The 30 year old defenceman played most of last season with the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League. That’s not where he expected to be while earning $4.625 million per season.
Moving bad contracts is not easy in the National Hockey League.